Virginia 2006 legislation

[Tom Powers]

Here is a list of legislation that is being considered this year. I have tried to group like bills together. I will up date this thread with new bills as they come in and as go through the committees, etc. For details on any given one go to

http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?061+men+BIL

And enter the bill number. If you have comments regarding a bill you can use the link below to identify your representative and get their address and Richmond phone number.

http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform

You can also call the constituents hot line between 9AM and 5PM to provide input on any given bill(s). (800) 889-0229 (outside Richmond) or 698-1990 (Richmond area)

Sample letters, etc. can be found at:

http://legis.state.va.us/cit_guide/cit_partic/contacting_my.html

In my opinion participation in the following order of importance.

1. Visit your legislator in Richmond and do a follow up letter/email.
2. Call your legislator in Richmond, talk to them personally and follow up with a letter/email.
3. Send a PERSONAL letter or email.
4. Call the 800 number above.
5. Send a form email where you say the exact same thing as lots of other folks.
6. Send in a form letter.
7. Send in a preprinted postcard.
8. Sign a petition.

Remember be polite and don’t waste your time threatening regarding your vote.

Tom

HB6 (T.C. Wright) Free hunting and fishing licenses. Allows every resident of the Commonwealth who has served in an armed conflict or peacekeeping mission after September 11, 2001, to obtain all of the required hunting and fishing licenses issued by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, except special lifetime licenses, at no charge for one year.

HB327 (Harvey Morgan) Personal property tax; classification of watercraft used for business purposes. Removes the weight restriction from the personal property classification for rate purposes of watercraft used for business purposes. Under current law there is a separate classification for such watercraft not exceeding five tons.

HB362 (L.S. Lingamfelter) Composition of Board of Game and Inland Fisheries. Increases the membership of the Board and changes the criteria for selecting members of the Board. Under current law, the 11 members of the Board are appointed by the Governor, with one member representing each congressional district. The bill removes the current members and increases the number of Board members to 13, with the Speaker of the House appointing four members, the Senate Rules Committee appointing three members, and the Governor appointing six members. The terms of the new members will initially be staggered. The bill also requires that (i) the minute books and other records of the agency be open to examination by members of the General Assembly and (ii) the appointment of the Director of the Department be subject to confirmation by the General Assembly.

HB1130 (Cline) Appointments to the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries. Changes the manner in which appointments are made to the 11-member Board of Game and Inland Fisheries. Currently, all members are appointed by the Governor. This bill will have the Governor appoint six members, the Speaker of the House of Delegates will appoint three members and the Senate Committee on Rules will appoint two members. The appointment will be made with the appointing authorities alternating in their selection of new members. The Governor will make the first appointment to fill a vacancy on the Board, followed by the Speaker and the Senate Committee on Rules.

HB435 (H. Morgan Griffith) Moratorium on horseshoe crabs. Places a moratorium on the landings and importation of horseshoe crabs until certain conditions are met. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission is required to promulgate regulations imposing the moratorium. {moratorium in place until the populations of Red Knots reaches 240,000 or stablished in the United States Shorebird Conservation Plan of May 2001, and (ii) the population of horseshoe crabs returns to 1990 population levels}

HB 651, (HB 981) Federal sport fish matching funds. Gives the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (DGIF) the authority to accept federal grant money from the federal Wallop-Breaux Fund. The U.S. Department of the Interior has indicated that Virginia's statutes do not give the agency such authority. The wording, as proposed, would satisfy federal officials. {In both cases this just makes acceptance of Wallop-
Breaux acceptable by federal standards. They already get this money.)

HB 652 (L.W. Lewis) Oyster taxes; suspends imposition of oyster inspection and replenishment tax. Oyster taxes. Suspends imposition of the oyster inspection tax and the oyster replenishment tax for the period July1, 2006, until July 1, 2010. ($0.50 per Bu. Tax)

HB 749 (Cosgrove), SB84 (John C. Watkins) Menhaden; limits on amount harvested annually. Harvest quota on menhaden. Limits to 105,783 metric tons the amount of menhaden that can be harvested annually in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries from 2006 through 2010. This limit is in accordance with the cap placed on the fishery by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission in its Atlantic Menhaden Fishery Management Plan. {Implements ASMFC management plan. States that NMFS will determine when the cap has been met.}

HB 252 (Del. John Cosgrove) Menhaden fishery; Marine Resources Commission may adopt regulations governing. Directs the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to adopt regulations to implement the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden. The bill stipulates that no regulation can impose limits on the fishing of menhaden that are more restrictive than the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden. The bill also requires that any moratorium on the fishery be subject to legislative review and repeals the Governor’s authority to implement menhaden management measures by proclamation.

HB 1045 (Robert Watkins) Menhaden fishing; prohibited in certain areas. Content of the changes in the bill -- .
C. No purse seine vessels greater than 70 gross tons {Reduction boats} shall initiate a set for menhaden after 5 P.M. on any Friday or prior to 6 P.M. on any Sunday. In addition, no such vessel shall initiate any set for menhaden between the hours of 8 A.M. and 6 P.M. on any official holiday of the Commonwealth, as identified in § 2.2-3300 of the Code of Virginia.
§ 28.2-412 Catch Control
A. The catch of menhaden by purse seine for reduction purposes within the lawful harvest area of the Chesapeake Bay shall not exceed 131,000 metric tons annually. For the purposes of this section, the lawful harvest area of the Chesapeake Bay is that area defined in § 28.2-409
B. The Secretary of Natural Resources shall devise a system for monitoring such landings and issue a notice of closure if 100 percent of the annual limit set forth in subsection A has been reached. Upon 24 hours such actual notice, the taking of menhaden by purse seine for reduction purposes in the Chesapeake Bay shall cease. Once such actual notice is given, it shall be unlawful for any person to take menhaden by purse seine for reduction purposes in the Chesapeake Bay until the following menhaden fishing year.
C. For the purposes of this section, the Chesapeake Bay shall include all of the Commonwealth’s territorial waters interior to the Chesapeake Bay, west of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel.
D. Should the catch of menhaden in any year exceed the limit described in subsection A of this section, the amount of such overage shall be deducted from the next year’s harvest limit.


HB870 (K. J. Byron) HB1075 (Dudley) Boating safety course. Requires courts to order any person who has been convicted of violating a boating law that imposes a penalty of a Class 3 misdemeanor or greater to pass a National Association of State Boating Law Administrators approved boating safety course, accepted by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. {Class 3 and above are pretty serious violations.}

HB872 (K. J. Byron) Mandatory boating safety education; penalty. Makes it a Class 4 misdemeanor for anyone to operate a motorboat without having successfully completed an approved boating safety education course. The education requirement is phased-in so that by July 1, 2015, all motorboat operators will have been required to complete and pass the course or an equivalency exam. The Board is directed to develop and administer the mandatory boating safety education program through the promulgation of regulations, taking into account comments from the public. There are a number of ways a person can comply with the law other than successfully completing an approved course, such as passing an equivalency examination, possessing a valid license issued to maritime personnel, etc.

SB 528 Mandatory boating safety education; penalty Same as HB872 except it only applies to Smith Mountain Lake. The bill sets a maximum speed limit of 25 miles per hour on Smith Mountain Lake between sunset and sunrise.

HB938 Board of Game and Inland Fisheries. Changes the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries from a supervisory board to a policy board. The bill gives the Governor and not the Board the authority to appoint the Director of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. However, the person who is serving as the Director on July 1, 2006, will continue in that position until he resigns or is terminated; whereupon, the Governor will appoint the new Director.


Past Senate 35-4 -- SB2 (Marty Williams) Crab pot buoys. Requires the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to promulgate regulations that all crab pot buoys and floats be marked with reflective material so all buoys and floats are visible at night when illuminated.


SB634 Subaqueous permits. (Marty Williams) Exempts L or T head construction platforms or protrusions of 250 square feet or less that extend over state-owned, subaqueous lands from having to obtain a permit from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission so long as the platform or protrusion serves a water-dependent use such as the docking of vessels.


Added 6/21

SB695 Local control over operation of boats. (Hagler) Provides that no locality or other political subdivision shall adopt or enforce any ordinance, resolution, or motion governing the operation of any watercraft, boat, or vessel other than those expressly authorized by statute. Any local ordinance, resolution, or motion adopted prior to July 1, 2006, governing the operation of any watercraft, boat, or vessel, other than those expressly authorized by statute, is invalid.

SB678 Hagler Motor fuels taxes; elimination of certain refunds. Eliminates the current refund of fuels taxes for fuels used in operating or propelling recreational or pleasure watercraft. All revenues attributable to the repeal of the refund would be deposited into the Game Protection Fund to be used for the direct benefit of the boating public.

[this is where the money would go] -- An amount equivalent to the revenue attributable to the repeal of provisions under this chapter that provided for refunds of tax paid upon any fuel used in operating or propelling any recreational or pleasure watercraft, pursuant to enactments of the 2006 Session of the General Assembly, shall be deposited by the Comptroller into the Game Protection Fund of the state treasury to be made available to the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries. The Commissioner shall determine the amount of such revenue for the 2006-2007 fiscal year and shall report the same to the Comptroller by September 1, 2007. The amount reported by the Commissioner shall be deposited by the Comptroller into the Game Protection Fund no later than June 30, 2008. Such amount shall also be deposited into the Game Protection Fund for the 2008-2009 fiscal year and for each fiscal year thereafter no later than the last day of the fiscal year. Such moneys deposited into the Game Protection Fund shall be used exclusively for activities and purposes of direct benefit to the boating public, including but not limited to law enforcement

[rocksandblues]

thanks.

that is a great resource for us.

[jwas1]

Thanks for posting this important info. HB 1045 sounds like it might be an Omega stealth bill since it has a much higher minimum than that imposed by ASMFC. Other than issuing boat registration numbers, does Game and Inland Fisheries have anything to do with saltwater fishing?

[Bob G]

jwas1 - They do a lot of work protecting the spawning stocks of stripers, American shad and river herring. DGIF has jurisdiction over most of the spawning areas in the upper reaches of the rivers, so they set creel limits, make spawning stock assessments, work to remove barriers to migration, and support American shad stocking efforts. They also do a lot to help ensure good water quality in these rivers that serve as nursery areas for the juveniles.

[jwas1]

Thanks Bob. I grew up in SW Virginia and am more familiar with their work with trout stocking and hunting regulation.

[Tom Powers]

However, from an enforcement in tidal waters, below the fresh/salt water license line VMRC is the dominent agency. Also there is lots of money for boat registration that goes exclusively to DGIF for boating safety and enforcement.

If this money is kept in the state coffers it should be split based on their best guess for the source (salt or fresh water boaters)

Tom

[Bob G]

You're welcome jwas1. Tom, I think the money they take in from boating registrations is split some way by agreement between VMRC and DGIF. I forgot to mention that DGIF also provide a good bit of boating access to salt water, like the ramp at Wake on the Rapp.

[Tom Powers]

It took me a minute but below is the backup data regarding the boater's registration money. It all goes to DGIF.

The 2% sales tax on watercraft also goes to DGIF and only to DGIF.

Pretty much since the saltwater recreational license has been put in place, DGIF only works on big saltwater ramp projects when they can get funding from the saltwater license fund. Furthermore they have started getting their Wallop-Breaugh (sp?) matching funds from VMRC-RFAB money and all they are claiming on the reports is that it is funding driving around to inspect ramps and do minor repairs.

I stand by my earlier position. DGIF is not doing all that much for the saltwater boater or fisherman.

Tom

58.1-1410 (says that ) 2% sales tax on watercraft goes directly to DGIF

(to be used as follows)

Such funds shall be made available only to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for the following: boating-related activities and expenses, and to enhance and improve recreation opportunities for boaters, including but not limited to land acquisition, capital projects, maintenance, and facilities for boating access to the waters of the Commonwealth; boating safety law enforcement, including salaries, benefits, equipment and overtime expenses for game wardens so assigned; boating and other aquatic resource educational activities, including personnel, and education and safety materials; boating-related expenses for required reporting to federal and state officials; information management costs, including personnel, hardware, and software needed to better serve boating customers; and related administrative costs for boating-related activities, including human resources, accounting, public relations, administration and facilities to support and house necessary boating-related personnel and equipment.


§ 29.1-701. Department to administer chapter; Motorboat Committee; funds for administration; records; rules and regulations.

§ 29.1-701. Department to administer chapter; Motorboat Committee; funds for administration; records; rules and regulations.

A. It shall be the duty of the Department to enforce and administer the provisions of this chapter.

B. The chairman of the Board shall designate from among the members of the Board three members who shall serve as the Motorboat Committee. This committee shall place special emphasis on the administration and enforcement of this chapter.

C. All expenses required for administration and enforcement of this chapter shall be paid from the funds collected pursuant to the numbering and certificate of title provisions of this chapter. All moneys collected pursuant to the numbering and certificate of title provisions of this chapter shall be deposited into the state treasury credited to a special fund, known as the game protection fund, and accounted for as a separate part to be designated as the motorboat and water safety fund. Such moneys shall be made available to the Department solely for the administration and enforcement of this chapter, for educational activities relating to boating safety and for other activities and purposes of direct benefit to the boating public. Moneys from the motorboat and water safety fund shall not be diverted to any other state agency. The motorboat and water safety fund and moneys otherwise provided for in this chapter shall be made available to carry out the intent and purposes as set forth in this chapter in accordance with plans approved by the Board. All such funds are hereby reserved until expended for the enforcement, administration and other provisions of this chapter. However, the Board is authorized to adopt a plan or formula for the use of these moneys for employing and equipping any additional personnel necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter and for paying a proportionate share of the salaries, expense, and operational costs of existing personnel according to the time and effort expended by them in carrying out the provisions of this chapter. Such plan or formula may be altered or amended from time to time by the Board as existing conditions may warrant. No funds derived from the sale of hunting licenses or fishing licenses shall be expended or diverted for carrying out the provisions of this chapter.

D. The Department shall maintain a record of all certificates of title it issues. The certificates of title may be located (i) under a distinctive title number assigned to each watercraft, (ii) under the hull identification number of each watercraft, (iii) under the registration number, (iv) alphabetically under the name of the owner, and (v) at the discretion of the Board by any additional methods it determines.

Some of the fuel tax money goes to both DGIF and VMRC. But not much. The VMRC part is $165,000

58.1-2289
D. One and one-half cents of the tax collected on each gallon of fuel used to propel a commercial watercraft upon which a refund has been paid shall be paid to the credit of the Game Protection Fund of the state treasury to be made available to the Board of Game and Inland Fisheries until expended for the purposes provided generally in subsection C of § 29.1-701, including acquisition, construction, improvement and maintenance of public boating access areas on the public waters of this Commonwealth and for other activities and purposes of direct benefit and interest to the boating public and for no other purpose. However, one and one-half cents per gallon on fuel used by commercial fishing, oystering, clamming, and crabbing boats shall be paid to the Department of Transportation to be used for the construction, repair, improvement and maintenance of the public docks of this Commonwealth used by said commercial watercraft. Any expenditures for the acquisition, construction, improvement and maintenance of the public docks shall be made according to a plan developed by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.

From the tax collected pursuant to the provisions of this chapter from the sales of gasoline used for the propelling of watercraft, after deduction for lawful refunds, there shall be paid into the state treasury for use by the Marine Resources Commission, the Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board, the State Water Control Board, and the Commonwealth Transportation Board to (i) improve the public docks as specified in this section, (ii) improve commercial and sports fisheries in Virginia's tidal waters, (iii) make environmental improvements including, without limitation, fisheries management and habitat enhancement in the Chesapeake and its tributaries, and (iv) further the purposes set forth in § 33.1-223, a sum as established by the General Assembly.

[Catch This]

And I agree with Mr. Powers. DGIF is not doing much for the Saltwater and certainly not a proportionate effort to the Saltwater generated dollars they get.

PS all Menhaden efforts are dead in the General Assembly. Our best hope is a proclamation from the Govenor .

[Coan Ranger]

I have paid out many thousands$ over the last 50 years to be able to hunt, fish and boat. . I have seen a few boat ramps and little else. Looks like most of the money goes to pay people who make sure I paid the fees. I would be happy to pay if I saw some value received. I had just as soon scrap the whole damn thing.