More Boating Restrictions!

Maryland bill seeks to rein in floating parties

Permits, security would be required for gatherings


Associated Press

ANNAPOLIS — The Magothy River’s Bumper Bash, Chesapeake City’s Canal Day and other large boat gatherings would be required to get permits weeks in advance and organizers could have to provide security under a bill being supported by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

The Senate bill would not apply to events required to have a Coast Guard permit, such as sail parades and regattas. However, gatherings that create unusual hazards would have to apply for a permit, pay an application fee and comply with conditions that could include providing security, time limits and placing buoys.

Col. George F. Johnson IV, the superin*tendent of the Maryland Natural Re*sources Police, said events such as the Bumper Bash, which has drawn more than 1,000 boats during the past two years, have become a drain on the department’s resources.

“It’s getting to the point where because of my reduced workforce that we have to dedicate every working person practically to these events,” Johnson said, adding the bill was an attempt to limit the gatherings so his department can handle them.

Last year’s Bumper Bash drew so many boats it prompted the Coast Guard to mandate a 40-foot-wide channel be kept clear of boats in case of emergency. The Canal Day event, meanwhile, has also been the scene of frequent alcohol-related arrests.

The bill originally would have required a permit for gatherings of more than 50 vessels and 60 days advance filing, but Johnson said the bill was amended in response to comments from lawmakers at a hearing in January. The amended bill also includes an appeals process for permit de*nials, he said.

In addition to the Bumper Bash and Canal Day, Johnson said an event known as Aquapalooza in Charles County has also drawn large numbers of boats. The police superintendent said the events have had had near drownings and accidents by boats going to and from the events.

“We have pictures of where people are jumping off the top of their boats into three feet of water,” Johnson said. “It’s quite a dangerous situation.”

Commies...

That's nothing. Wait until they raise your registration goes up by 3 times like they are trying or they rape the bay fund again this year or the gas tax increase.........
These guys are on it. http://www.cbpba.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6235

Anytime you have a large amount of drunk people together there's bound to be issues.

I love to party, but I steer clear of cluster phucks like that.

i don't have prob with permits for huge gatherings, however i do have a prob with raised registration fees to replenish a bay fund that was pillaged by state gov.

This is NOT just about so called "permit fees". We were told a permit if ever approved, would cost about $20,000. That would include charges for all Police, boats, fuel, etc. Almost all large events on the water are free and this type of "fee" is designed only to drive the events away.

There will always be parties on the water. This bill will make it impossible to organize and plan an event AND actually make it worse!

The language of the bill is so vague they can charge whatever they want to approve and "enforce" the permit.

This STATEWIDE enforcement will entirely change the face of boating in MD for the worse. Please follow and hopefully fight this awful legislation.

Mean while, "occupy whatever" can have a marxist commune in your downtown park without a permit.

that's a matter of opinion and I have mine, I agree there will always be party's on the water. yet at bumper bash last year i saw people racing up and down the gauntlet on jetskis and I do happen to know one of the people that got a dui on the jetski, her 3rd or 4th if im not mistaken. Believe me when i say I'm not in favor of legislation over education but when that many people get together with alcohol, there becomes a need for safety crews, not unlike the issue going on with the races in KW. Are you going to be liable when a drunk on a jet ski runs over someone? are you going to be liable for drunks on the beach fighting? keep in mind it is a private island and the owner tried to stop people from coming on because of the drunken brawls. where is the line drawn? did you profit from it?

someone above mentioned the occupy sloths, these people are demonstrating for a cause, one that i don't agree with but it is their right. , you have to be realistic and accept the fact that gov services are going to be used to cover this event, doesn't mean it isn't a good event, its just facts, if YOU organized everything then YOU have a responsibility to make sure its safe.

I'm gonna have to agree with Rob on this one. As much as I like having fun on the water, some of the really big events, anywhere, tend to get out of hand. Didn't a 27 year old guy die at Canal Day last year?

But, what's to stop people from getting together on a regular basis. I can't see them ever getting rid of that. Even if I wanted to have a birthday party on the water at one of the local anchorage spots, I can't see how they would ever control it. Now, if I invited 10,000 people, I could see them having an issue with that.

Back in NJ we would go to a place we called the Island. It was a local tie up spot. A guy Mike that we all know had a party each year called the beach bash. The first year was the best year and every year after that more and more people came. More and more unwelcome people who just wanted to go to a party. Half of them were taken over to the island on inflatable boats.. Sure enough, the last summer I lived in NJ one of the meat heads started a fight on the beach and the police came and actually tazered the dude.

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Maryland is such a blue state it is so typical for them to want to regulate everything to include common sense. You own a boat so therefore we can make money off of you and dictate where and when you can have fun. This is just step one and if passed it will only get more restrictive.