State agency reviews wake-sports rule after lake groups petition to prohibit wake boats on inland lakes

At a Natural Resources & Energy Committee meeting, officials from the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources reviewed the wake‑sports rule the agency adopted for the 2024 season and outlined next steps after lake groups filed petitions asking the agency to prohibit wake sports on several inland lakes.

Agency deputy director Bethany Sargent and staff from the Lakes and Ponds program described how the existing "use of public waters" rules, adopted under state authority, were used to regulate wake sports and how the department applied technical criteria to limit where wake sports may occur. "The rule that we came up with was that we needed to have 50 contiguous acres of lake or pond that was 500 feet from shore on all sides and at least 20 feet deep," said Laura Gugileschi of the Lakes and Ponds program, describing the criteria intended to reduce bottom disturbance and shoreline erosion.

The rule, the agency said, makes wake‑sport zones available only on lakes that meet those size and depth thresholds; under that standard roughly 30 inland lakes are technically eligible. Enforcement of the use‑of‑public‑waters rules is carried out by partners including the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Vermont State Police Marine Division and Vermont Fish & Wildlife wardens, the agency said. Agency staff reported no substantiated enforcement citations in the rule’s first year in effect, though they acknowledged that not all violations are observed or reported.

Lake associations and advocacy groups told the committee they want a broader approach. A representative of Responsible Waves for Vermont Lakes, the petitioner group, told the panel: "Our view right now presently is that Vermont should prohibit wake sports on all inland lakes." The Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds and multiple public commenters described concerns that ballast water in wake boats is especially hard to decontaminate and could spread aquatic invasive species such as zebra mussels and Eurasian watermilfoil; they urged stronger decontamination infrastructure and financial support to lake associations that manage infestations.

Agency staff described a three‑track response: (1) adjudicate the petitions submitted by lake associations; (2) open a pre‑rulemaking public engagement process to revise the statewide use‑of‑public‑waters rule; and (3) expand decontamination capacity. Staff said they have received ten petitions representing eleven eligible lakes (the agency later supplied a list of the petition lakes) and that they will make formal determinations on those petitions in the coming weeks while initiating public outreach on proposed updates to the statewide rule. Staff also said a stakeholder decontamination working group is developing short‑ and long‑term steps, including a pilot program for additional hot‑water decontamination stations planned for the summer.

Speakers at the meeting emphasized two recurring points: safety for small‑craft users and the high cost and volunteer burden of managing aquatic invasive species. Paddlers and small‑boat users said large wakes — sometimes advertised by manufacturers at multiple feet in height — can capsize kayaks and small sailboats and push other users away from areas of the lake. Lake association witnesses said volunteer groups already shoulder much of the cost to monitor and respond to infestations and that a single boat moving between lakes can seed a new infestation.

On procedure and history: staff reminded the committee that the use‑of‑public‑waters rules originated in the 1990s and that administration moved to the Agency of Natural Resources in 2012 through Act 138. The agency noted the adopted rule follows the statutory process for resolving competing uses of public waters and that the final adopted rule differs in some respects from the petitioners’ original proposal because the rulemaking must seek the least‑restrictive approach that still protects existing uses.

The agency described an informational timeline: no immediate changes to the current 2024 rule for the coming season were planned; the department expects to announce pre‑rulemaking public engagement sessions in spring and summer, expects the decontamination working‑group report this summer, and said any new rulemaking would aim to be ready by 2026. The Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules previously reviewed the proposal; witnesses noted LCAR had expressed concerns about safety and distance standards during that review.

Next steps the agency outlined include statewide public meetings on proposed amendments, formal determinations on the outstanding petitions within weeks of the meeting, and continued work to expand decontamination capacity and clarify enforcement roles. The agency asked stakeholders to continue submitting technical information that will inform draft rule language and enforcement guidance.

For residents: agency staff said they will post maps of current wake‑sport zones, decontamination requirements and resources on the agency website and will publicize upcoming meetings and the working‑group report once dates are set.