LOGAN – U.S. Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT) has introduced legislation intended to protect state efforts to fund water-based search and rescue, boating safety and protection of waterways.
The State Boating Act was introduced by Moore and U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA) into the 119th Congress on May 5 to clarify the authority of states to collect boating-related vessel registration fees to fund aquatic invasive species prevention and public safety programs.
“In Utah and across the country, state fish and wildlife agencies work tirelessly to improve boaters’ experiences and safety,” according to Moore.
“By taking away this funding stream, the federal government is hindering the important work these state agencies do to improve boater programs, conduct search and rescue operations and protect waterways from invasive species.”
In the past, many states have routinely administered the U.S. Coast Guard regulations requiring annual Continuity of Numbers (CON) registrations on most vessels owned by citizens and operating on the navigable waters of the United States. That practice allowed boat owners to obtain both their registrations and invasive species fund stickers in a single financial transaction.
In 2025, however, that practice halted by Coast Guard officials, who pressured state to separate those boating related transactions due to federal regulations that do not permit states to tack on additional fees with CON registrations.
But Moore and Kiggans believe that separating those transactions would increase processing fees and administrative burdens for both the consumer and the state agencies, as well as potentially creating confusion over the payments.
Kiggans calls their streamlined State Boating Act proposal “… commonsense legislation that provides certainty for states’ funding and helps keep waterways safe, accessible and well-maintained.”
That view is shared by representatives of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, ConservAmerica, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.
Similar legislation was introduced into the U.S. Senate by Senators Peter Welch (D-VT) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) in March.