Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Grant Inspections topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Staff to begin grant inspections; overwintering permits clarified
Summary
Staff announced grant inspections beginning the week of Oct. 21 and described minimum-productivity criteria ($1,000 first/second year; $500 thereafter) and a progressive three-year enforcement process; Jordan also described overwintering permits for 'Secwet Harbor' (Dec. 1–Mar. 15) requiring a memorandum of understanding.
Jordan, the program staff member overseeing shellfish grants, told the Shelters Committee that scheduled grant inspections will begin next week and that inspectors will check for minimum productivity tied to grant rules. "It's laid out in our regulations that first and second year grant holders have to invest a minimum of $1,000 in year and product," Jordan said, adding that beyond the second year holders must invest at least $500.
Jordan said inspection appointments are currently scheduled for Oct. 21, Oct. 23 and Oct. 25, and that staff will try to accommodate recipients' schedules. "If there is ever a question... that's when we request receipts to see who you purchased from, how much you bought, and what you paid for them," Jordan said, describing receipts as a secondary verification tool rather than a first-step blanket request.
On enforcement, Jordan described a progressive approach rather than immediate penalties: "The level to which not meeting minimum productivity in regards to someone losing their grant is a 3 year process," Jordan said, adding staff would document failures, open a discussion with the grant holder and then escalate only if noncompliance continued.
Jordan also reminded growers that overwintering in the harbor is available to grant holders with permits and a memorandum of understanding. "You can overwinter December 1 to March 15, pending water quality testing by the Division of Reef Fisheries," Jordan said, and noted the town's stated fees "are as they were, $10 a cleat, $20–$25 a float" and that the East Side only is permitted; the West Side was not permitted this year.
Committee members urged clearer, more quantitative inspection metrics rather than a wholly subjective assessment. One member recommended developing specific, documented criteria to guide inspections and reduce subjectivity; Jordan responded that much is already provided in general laws and town regulations and that she would "clean it up in terms of procedure." Jordan said inspection findings would be shared with the committee in aggregate and that private business practices would not be published publicly.
The committee did not take formal disciplinary action at the meeting; Jordan will begin inspections and return to the committee with updates.
