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Marine Board budget outlook raises concern as boat registrations fall 25% from historic highs
Summary
Business Services Manager Christie Cornish warned the board that motorized registrations have declined to about 152,000 in 2024 from a peak near 200,000 in the early 2000s and that continuing declines and rising costs could produce a multi‑biennium funding shortfall requiring fee increases or program cuts.
Christie Cornish, business services manager, told the board that the agency’s revenue is heavily dependent on motorized registrations and related fuel taxes, and that the board should plan for a sustained decline. "We're seeing about a 6% decline in registration each year," Cornish said, noting that registrations were roughly 152,000 in 2024 versus a historical high of about 200,000.
Cornish presented projections showing an $8.3 million decline projected for the 2027–2029 biennium under current assumptions and a roughly $4.5 million operating shortfall that would reduce the agency's operating cash below $10 million if unchanged. She outlined options including cutting expenditures, pursuing a fee increase in the 2027–2029 budget cycle or a hybrid strategy combining both. Cornish said a fee change would not take effect until January 2028 if pursued in the next legislative cycle.
Board members discussed options and timing; one member said a hybrid approach is likely necessary because deep cuts alone would change the agency’s mission. Warren and Cornish said staff will return in January with modeled scenarios and fee‑increase options for board direction. "You have to have a fee increase discussion as well... you really need to have something that's sustainable for probably about the next three biennia," Cornish told the board.
