Long public testimony on S.224 centers on lake access, wake‑boat rules and invasive‑species prevention

The Natural Resources & Energy Committee heard extended public testimony on S.224, a bill addressing municipal authority over surface waters, event permissions, wake‑boat rulemaking and aquatic invasive species prevention.

Multiple witnesses urged the committee either to remove two sections they said risked restricting long‑standing public access or to amend the bill to elevate aquatic invasive prevention. A representative who identified himself as Mr. Kelly argued Sections 1 and 8 ‘‘are both nonstarters’’ and warned against creating municipal surface‑water rules that would displace existing state authority and the public trust. Kelly said public rights where the public right‑of‑way intersects mean access already exists and cautioned that municipal control would create enforcement burdens and unintended legal challenges.

Barry Cahoon, water‑quality director for the Joe’s Pond Association, urged the committee to add explicit statutory language prioritizing aquatic nuisance inspection and to require the Department of Fish and Wildlife to collaborate with local lake associations to site boat inspection and decontamination facilities. Cahoon said the association’s greeter program caught Eurasian watermilfoil in August 2024 and described a preliminary 3,000‑square‑foot design for a boat inspection station that would have required only two parking spaces at the state fishing access area. Cahoon requested the bill be amended to make boat inspection stations an authorized, high‑priority use at state fishing access areas.

Several lake residents told personal stories about boat use, wake‑boat impacts and local management choices. A Lake Iroquois resident who identified himself as Robbie described how most lake boats remain on a single home lake and said better data and communication about tournaments and large events could prevent conflicts. Jared Carpenter of the Lake Champlain Committee recommended that wake‑boat restrictions be set in rule rather than statute to preserve flexibility and that decontamination and inspection standards be adopted in guidance.

Judge Tom Zoney, chief superior judge, offered an administrative‑law point: he recommended adding chapter 49 explicitly to a jurisdictional statute (4 VSA § 34) so appeals concerning municipal ordinances under the bill would fall cleanly to the environmental division and avoid jurisdictional ambiguity.

Next steps: committee members asked staff to coordinate with Fish & Wildlife, ANR and the Lakes & Ponds program to consider Cahoon’s proposed language, to clarify the relationship between existing DEC/ANR rules and any municipal authority, and to seek technical input on parking, runoff controls for boat wash facilities and interactions with federal funding.

Ending: No final action was taken. The committee will solicit technical input and consider amendments that would protect public access while making invasive‑species prevention a clear statutory priority.