With the Environmental Protection Agency poised to implement a new discharge-permit program regulating sailboats, H.R. 2550, the Recreational Boating Act of 2007, may be the only thing that can save non-commercial boaters from costly new fees.

H.R. 2550 was introduced in the House of Representatives in May by Gene Taylor (D-MS), and—if passed—would amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to exempt the nation’s 18 million recreational boaters from being required to purchase stringent commercial ballast-water permits. A September 2006 court decision struck down the 34-year-old exemption, and the EPA is currently developing national regulations for gray water, engine-cooling water, deck wash, and other discharges from recreational boats. The new permit system would take effect in September 2008.

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Posted: September 17, 2007