[T_Shan BAWS]

Well, looks like this could finally be happening. I had heard rumors of this for a lot of years, but never thought I'd see it come to fruition.

This is the last straw, if this happens, I'm moving to New Hampshire, see below:

General Assembly


Raised Bill No. 5828

February Session, 2008


LCO No. 2814


*02814_______ENV*

Referred to Committee on Environment


Introduced by:


(ENV)


AN ACT CONCERNING CANDLEWOOD LAKE BOAT USE PERMITS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2008) (a) In addition to any other required permits or registration pursuant to section 15-142 of the general statutes, no person shall launch, moor or operate and no owner shall permit the launching, mooring or operation of any motorboat or sailboat upon the waters of Candlewood Lake without a permit issued by the Candlewood Lake Authority, established pursuant to section 7-151a of the general statutes. For the purposes of this section, "horsepower" shall have the same meaning as section 15-141 of the general statutes; "motorboat" means any watercraft fitted with a propulsion machinery, whether or not such machinery is the principal source of propulsion, that has a horsepower of ten or greater; "sailboat" means any vessel propelled by sail alone which has a length of nineteen and one-half feet.

(b) Said permits shall be issued by the Candlewood Lake Authority in cooperation with the town clerks of its member towns or an agent of such town clerks.

(c) The fee for said permits shall be: (1) Fifty dollars annually for state residents, (2) one hundred dollars annually for nonstate residents, (3) twenty dollars for a state resident for a temporary pass which shall be valid for one calendar week, and (4) thirty dollars for a nonstate resident for a temporary pass which shall be valid for one calendar week. The Candlewood Lake Authority shall have the authority to increase permit fees, but shall remain uniform in all the member municipalities.

(d) The Candlewood Lake Authority and commercial agents of the town clerks may retain one dollar of the fee for each permit they issue pursuant to subsections (b) and (c) of this section.

(e) Application for a permit must be made on a standard form which shall be issued by the Candlewood Lake Authority. Said forms shall require the motorboat or sailboat owner's name and address, a description and the registration number of the motorboat or sailboat. Upon receipt of a completed form and permit fee, the applicant shall receive a decal which shall be affixed to the motorboat or sailboat and shall clearly display the effective dates of the permit.

(f) The Candlewood Lake Authority, in cooperation with the member town clerks, shall designate sufficient agents to ensure, during the period between the third Saturday in April through Columbus Day permits and decals will be readily and immediately available to applicants seven days a week. Applications for permits received by mail shall be processed and issued by mail upon five days from the receipt of said application and correct fee. Application forms shall also be made available through the Internet on the Candlewood Lake Authority and Department of Environmental Protection web sites.

(g) The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall establish a Boating Fund on behalf of the Candlewood Lake Authority. All permit fees collected by the Candlewood Lake Authority, town clerks and the town clerks' commercial agents, with the exception of those described in subsection (d) of this section, shall be deposited into the Boating Fund. Said fund shall be used to cover all costs associated with the assignment of a Department of Environmental Protection law enforcement conservation officers or enforcement officers specific to Candlewood Lake. Additional funds available in the Boating Fund may be used to fund Candlewood Lake Authority or Department of Environmental Protection educational programs on boating safety, invasive species and water quality specific to Candlewood Lake.

(h) The Commissioner of Environmental Protection, the Candlewood Lake Authority and all member towns shall produce an annual accounting of revenues collected from the issuance of permits pursuant to subsection (b) of this section.

(i) The fine for launching, mooring or operating a motorboat or sailboat on Candlewood Lake without a valid permit shall be two hundred dollars.



This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:

Section 1


October 1, 2008


New section

Statement of Purpose:

To require a permit to operate certain motorboats and sailboats on Candlewood Lake
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Bringing Along Weighty Sacks
www.bawsfishing.com

[Pappy]

You need to write your legislators and senators to oppose this. Just because it was introduced doesn't mean it will pass. I know I had legislation introduced last year for Lake Housatonic that never made it out of committee.

That being said, if you snooze, you'll loose ...
Loose free access to the State's best lake for fishing bar none!

It would be helpful if someone familiar with the situation could draft a letter for us all to personalize and send.

Some questions that immediately come to mind are, why should the state permit a PRIVATE AGENCY like the Candlewood Lake Authority which only spends a minor % of its dollars on upkeep such authority? Who is the Candlewood Lake Authority, what constitutes their "membership"? What keeps them from using these dollars by the general public for even more restrictive uses of the lake and increased privitization of the resource?