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Who's
at the Helm?
I’ve
been here for more than six years. On
the surface, my assignment is running
this organization day-to-day but it’s
obvious that is not the real work. The
real work is growing recreational boating,
which benefits all of you – which is the
reason you are all members of the NMTA.
Over
the last two years I have come to a couple
of simple conclusions:
1.
States with “Departments of Boating” have
an advantage over states that do not (Oregon,
California and Ohio do; Washington State
does not).
2.
Washington boaters put a great deal of
money into the state general fund, but
no one is coordinating services for boaters
in the State or planning for future needs.
3.
We could grow boating faster and improve
services to boaters in Washington State
if we had a Department of Boating or at
least some coordinating effort who could
advocate for boating activities.
Last
fall, a volunteer named Steve Greaves
and I did some research on how the State
provides services to boaters. We identified
six different state agencies that have
something to do with boating in our state:
- Department
of Licensing
- Department
of Natural Resources
- Department
of Fish and Wildlife
- Department
of Revenue
- Interagency
Committee for Outdoor Recreation (IAC)
- State
Parks and Recreation
We
also tallied the money that boaters contribute
in taxes and fees to the state. It was
a big number. Over $75M every year.
Armed
with this information and a desire to
see more and improved facilities for boaters
in the state, my plan is to gather more
information and start discussions in Olympia
with state agencies and legislators about
how the state can “Serve our Boaters Better.”
There
is another key ingredient to this effort
and that is the size of boats in the state.
If you take a look at the bar graph below,
you will see that most boats in the state
are small and thus on trailers. Their
owners need boat launch ramps to get them
into the water before they can start enjoying
the benefits of boating, yet no one in
our state is charged with the responsibility
of planning for boating access on a macro
level. No state agency is charged with
the responsibility of advocating for boaters
and boating needs.
Larger
boats have different needs, including:
mooring buoys, pump-out facilities, marine
parks and more. Once again, no individual
agency has been given the responsibility
to look at boating needs on a global level.
I
am convinced that in order to grow boating
we need to take a holistic look at boating
in the state, starting with assessing
the current and future needs of boaters
and then determining how we are going
to pay for these facilities and services.
Maybe it’s reasonable and fair that some
of the $75M that boaters are contributing
to the state should be invested in upgrading
current facilities and planning for future
needs.
In
the time I have been on the job, I have
not found fault with any of the state
agencies that are serving boaters. In
fact, one agency, the IAC, deserves recognition
for their leadership and service to boaters.
The agency oversees the distribution of
tax funds to local and state agencies
which build and operate the hundreds of
boat launch facilities in the State… but
even they do not have overall planning
authority and their scope of service is
limited.
If
the State benefits from additional tax
revenues from boating and boaters, then
“would-be boaters” will benefit from world
class facilities that encourage people
to get out and enjoy some of the most
beautiful waters in the world.
With
warm regards,
Michael
Campbell
President
michael@nmta.net
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