The NC Boating Industries Services director, Mike Bradley, was invited as a speaker for Florida's 10th Annual Marine Summit held September 24th at the Palm Beach County Convention Center. He provided a "harmonizing" talk on NC boating industry recruitment following a like presentation by Bob Rohrlack, Senior Vice President of Recruitment & Retention, Enterprise Florida entitled "Economic Development & Business Retention". In the process of attending the event, Bradley picked up considerable information on industry issues of importance to both Florida and North Carolina.
 
One of the key topics of the Summit related to Florida's Save Our Waterfronts (SOW) effort in support of Amendment Six - a voter's option amendment that "if passed, it would rewrite the state's constitution so that marinas and other waterfront businesses would be taxed according to a current use standards rather than their "highest and best" use. According to current Florida standards, a bait shop pays the same taxes as a waterfront condo. If the amendment is approved, the marine industry says that marinas, boat and tackle shops and other working waterfront properties would save about $70 million next year in taxes, and $306 million by 2016". See saveourwaterfronts.org/.
 
In other Summit topics of common NC interest were sessions on Education & Workforce and on Regulatory & Environmental Compliance/Collaboration - both topics of strong, ongoing interest here in North Carolina. Additional information will be provided on both topics in the next NC Marine TradeWinds newsletter as Bradley will be attending the Sunday October 5th COMITT: Conference on Marine Industry Technical Training workshop  and meeting with NMMA staff on several regulatory issues including the EPA Boat MACT issues and EPA standards for boat engines and motors (see following articles).

 

 

From the NMMA The Washington Wave newsletter:

 

 

 NC Div. of Pollution Prevention & Environmental Assistance - (800-763-0138).

 

 

Hurricane Preparation Plan by NC Marine Trades Services (now Boating Services)

 

www.BoatUS.com/Hurricanes - Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatU.S.) online "tools" 

 

The International Marina Institute (IMI), a subsidiary of the Association of Marina Industries (AMI), announced its agenda for its eighth National Drystack Conference being held on October 26-28, 2008, in West Palm Beach, Florida.
 
The conference agenda is a blend of dynamic topics and leading industry presenters speaking on both domestic and international operations. Topics will range from "What's New in Forklifts?" to the "Financial Feasibility of Drystack Storage." Conference host Tim Timspon, CMM, Marina Resource, LLC, will open the conference with a presentation on "New Drystack Developments" which will cover Southeast Florida and beyond. The conference will also offer attendees a look into emerging drystack technologies and designs presented by Vertical Yacht Storage Systems, Automated Marine Technologies, GCM Contracting, and Boat Storage Solutions to name a few. Attendees will also be offered a glimpse into the actual operations of new drystack facilities through the eyes of some of IMI's elite Certified Marina Managers (CMMs), who will present their firsthand experiences with drystack from the design / production stage to current operations.
 
For more information, a complete agenda, and to register for the National Drystack Conference and/or the Southeast Florida Marina and Boatyard Study Tour, please call 401-247-0314, or visit the Drystack Conference page at the Association of Marina Industries web site: www.marinaassociation.org. 
 

 

Workers' compensation insurance rates will be dropping in North Carolina next year, for the first time in five years according to a September 2nd, 2008 NCRB Circular Letter. The North Carolina Rate Bureau has requested an average drop of 3.8% in overall rates (4.4 percent decrease in lost cost and a 0.6% increase in lost cost multiplier).
 
Also noted in that Circular was a change in the Longshore and Harbor rate: "For residual market rates for classifications which contemplate exposure under the United States Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act ("F" classifications), the percent proposed is 95% compared to the currently approved 100%". (See the NMMA article below about Expansion of Longshore Workers' Compensation Exemption).  See NC Workers Compensation. 

Return to index

 

This issue is of critical importance to NC boat builders and boat and yacht yards, as well as all companies that service these facilities. "NMMA is working on an effort to broaden the category of boat manufacturers that are exempt from longshore workers' compensation requirements. Currently, U.S. manufacturers of vessels less than 65 feet are exempted from providing employees with longshore workers' compensation. NMMA supports measures to increase this ceiling to include manufacturers of vessels less than 165 feet. 

As language for this expansion has been refined, an unrelated and damaging issue has arisen. One version of the legislation proposes officially classifying all vessels less than 165 feet as "recreational boats" with the U.S. Coast Guard, which would ultimately require most recreational boat manufacturers to purchase onerous longshore coverage, creating a significant financial hurdle. NMMA is working closely with the Marine Industries Association of South Florida (MIASF), Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Representative Ron Klein (D-Fla.) to protect boat manufacturers against this potentially devastating legislation."

 

 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard proposes to amend its regulations governing the stability of passenger vessels and the maximum number of passengers that may safely be permitted on board a vessel. The average American weighs significantly more than the assumed average weight per person utilized in current regulations, and the maximum number of persons permitted on a vessel is determined by several factors, including an assumed average weight for each passenger. Updating regulations to more accurately reflect today's average weight per person will maintain intended safety levels by taking this weight increase into account.

 

The Coast Guard is also taking this opportunity to clarify and update intact stability and subdivision and damage stability regulations.

 

[Federal Register: August 20, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 162)]
 
The proposed changes would affect calculations that determine the maximum number of passengers a vessel may safely carry. Average weight per person is one of several factors used. Until now, calculations have assumed an average weight of 160 pounds. The USCG Marine Safety Center conducted studies assuming a new average weight of 185 pounds. 

 

 

Federal Department of Labor issued a proposed rule written to revise out-of-date rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA). These rules had become out-of-date because of subsequent legislation and court decisions. The FLSA requires employers to pay non-exempt employees, at least, a federal minimum wage and overtime premium pay of time and a half for hours worked over 40 hours per week.

The FLSA also contains a number of exemptions from the minimum wage and overtime requirements. Over the years, Congress has amended the FLSA to refine or to add exemptions to clarify the minimum wage and overtime pay requirements. A 1974 amendment extended an overtime exemption to include any salesman primarily engaged in selling boats and trailers.

The proposed DOL rule is written to update federal regulations to reflect the amendment's addition of boat salespersons to the exemption from overtime if the boat and trailer salespersons are employed by non-manufacturing employees and to conform with existing laws. The proposed rule clarifies who is covered by the FLSA. The full text of the rule written in government language can be viewed at: http://hr.cch.com/news/employment/080108a.asp [ MRAA Dealer Alert letter dated 8/12/08]

 

Return to index

The basic steps are as follows:

1. The Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) must receive
            a.  A written request from the local governmental unit with territorial jurisdiction of the area in question requesting a local water safety regulation.
            b.  A certified copy of a resolution for the zone adopted by the local governmental unit. Public Notice of the local government's intention to adopt such a resolution is required.
            c.  A completed Form D-1 (Form D-1 designates the local governmental unit responsible for markers).
            d.  Two copies of a map of the waters in question showing the exact location and type of markers that are necessary for enforcement of the proposed rule.
* The application should state whether the funds for the No Wake Zone buoys will be provided privately or whether the local government in question is purchasing the markers.
**No Wake Zone buoys, which may be purchased at marine supply stores, must conform to the standards of the Uniform State Waterway Marking system. (Signs on land are not sufficient indicia for a no wake zone)
 
2. An investigation will be conducted by the Wildlife Commission's Enforcement Division to determine the basis of need for and advisability of the proposed rule.
 
3. If the Enforcement Officer's investigation indicates that the proposed rule is necessary to address a water safety hazard, the proposal is presented to the Wildlife Commission.
 
4. If the WRC approves the proposal, a public hearing will be scheduled and notice published, along with the proposed text of the Rule in the NCR. The WRC will receive public comment. When public comment has been duly considered and the determination is made to proceed, the text of the proposed rule is presented to the WRC for final adoption.
 
5. Following adoption, the permanent rule is submitted to the Rules Review Commission (RRC) for approval. If the RRC approves the rule, it usually becomes effective within a month of that approval.
 
Please note: Applicants from the coastal counties must obtain a Coastal Area Management Act [CAMA] permit from the Division of Coastal Management [DCM] in order to place a buoy in navigable waters there. (A no wake zone will not be enforced in the absence of a proper buoy marker. ) If, after investigation, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission authorizes a no wake zone for a coastal county, the applicant [county] must contact the DCM district manager to apply for such a "CAMA Major Permit. Please see http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/contact_dcm.htm for a list of the district offices and contact information for their district managers.

 

Any questions about this process should be referred to Betsy Foard at (919) 707-0013 or betsy.foard@ncwildlife.org.
 
Here is the link to the forms requesting a no-wake zone.

 

 

In short, the new regs will meet the California emission standards and the following is summary from the NMMA article in the Currents Newsletter

The new regulations are a result of a decade of negotiation and collaboration by the National Marine Manufacturers Association and the EPA, and will result in substantial benefits to the recreational marine industry, public health, welfare and the environment as well as long-term fuel savings, the National Marine Manufacturers Association reported in a recent statement.

The new regulations mean gasoline outboard, personal watercraft and stern drive inboard engine manufacturers will basically be required to meet California emission standards. This will also be the first time gasoline marine engines will be required to meet a carbon monoxide standard. For boat builders, these new emission regulations will require the fuel system to meet both permeation and diurnal emission reductions, the association explained.

The new standards require that fuel systems: accommodate low permeation fuel lines and low permeation plastic fuel tanks; include carbon canisters used to capture fumes from open fuel vents; and prevent fuel from spitting back during fueling, NMMA reported.