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frank m. · 02-08-2005, 02:48 PM

It's interesting that the Marine Patrol was willing to take on something like this, when (to my knowledge) there have been no safety incidents related to unpermitted rafts and they are already complaining so much about being stretched so thin. They are so quick to oppose any new laws that would require increased enforcement or more officers, even when those laws would surely improve safety. Are they going to need additional officers to patrol for illegal rafts? Is there any statistical evidence that says that unpermitted rafts pose a risk and that requiring permits has improved safety on other lakes? These are the kinds of arguments that MP uses when they do not want a new law, did they use the same criteria here? I was told by the director that they will not even bother sending someone out for jet-ski complaints anymore, but will they be sending out officers for unpermitted raft complaints? With all of the other issues on the lake these days that they are unable to manage, is this really a priority? And if not, why bother with the law? I suppose that a stationary raft is easier to catch than a speeding power boat.

02-08-2005, 02:48 PM	#13
frank m. Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 81 Thanks: 4 Thanked 27 Times in 7 Posts	Enforcement? It's interesting that the Marine Patrol was willing to take on something like this, when (to my knowledge) there have been no safety incidents related to unpermitted rafts and they are already complaining so much about being stretched so thin. They are so quick to oppose any new laws that would require increased enforcement or more officers, even when those laws would surely improve safety. Are they going to need additional officers to patrol for illegal rafts? Is there any statistical evidence that says that unpermitted rafts pose a risk and that requiring permits has improved safety on other lakes? These are the kinds of arguments that MP uses when they do not want a new law, did they use the same criteria here? I was told by the director that they will not even bother sending someone out for jet-ski complaints anymore, but will they be sending out officers for unpermitted raft complaints? With all of the other issues on the lake these days that they are unable to manage, is this really a priority? And if not, why bother with the law? I suppose that a stationary raft is easier to catch than a speeding power boat.