A delegation of Ohio lawmakers, led by Lt. Governor Jon Husted, joined showgoers on opening day of the Catawba Island Boat Show to acknowledge the impact that the boating industry has on the Buckeye State.

It was the second show produced by the Lake Erie Marine Trades Association this year at which top elected state officials were in attendance. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine attended LEMTA’s big Cleveland show in January.

Additional guests from the Ohio General Assembly at the Catawba show included:

• Sens. Theresa Gavarone, Stephanie Kunze and Bill Reineke

• Representatives Haraz Ghanbari, Tom Patton, DJ Swearington, Bride Sweeney and Dan Troy

• Glenn Cobb, chief of the Ohio Department of Parks & Watercraft

• Katie Hagarty, chief legislative officer for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources

The lawmakers applauded the latest data that documents boating in Ohio has a very big impact. The most recent report reveals that boating has an annual statewide economic impact of $6.4 billion. That was among the facts considered by DeWine during the Covid pandemic, when he opted to declare Ohio’s boating industry “essential,” thus keeping it open and operating.

Moreover, a report recently by the Boating Associations of Ohio, titled “Ohio Boating: A Wave of Employment and Enjoyment,” documents boating’s importance. For example, there are 20,300 good-paying jobs in Ohio’s marine industry. And another 24,400 indirect jobs are positively impacted by boating.

Ohio’s 653,136 registered boats rank the state sixth in the country (there’s also an estimated 241,000 more non-registered watercraft), and those registered boats take a whopping 36.3% of all Ohioans on-the-water at least once each year. That’s 187 million hours enjoying registered boats and another 128 million estimated hours enjoying the non-motorized craft.

“All the positive data notwithstanding, it’s our top priority to show our lawmakers and regulators that Ohio boating not only makes big contributions to our quality of life, but all of Ohio’s annual watercraft programs are funded through the Waterway Safety Fund, which is a model user-pay, user-benefit program,” says LEMTA president Michelle Burke.

The Waterway Safety Fund is the source of all boating programs, from safety and education to access and facilities development. It gets no general revenue funds. Ohio boat owners pay into it with boat and engine titling and registration fees that total more than $6.6 million annually. The fund also gets 7/8 of 1% of the state’s gasoline tax for off-highway use, annually totaling $22.8 million.

Additionally, Ohio’s myriad watercraft programs gain national recognition, being awarded more than $5 million annually in Coast Guard and other grants for a total annual budget of $36-plus million.

“It says boating is good for Ohio and Ohio is good for boating,” Burke says.

Unfortunately, opening day of the Catawba show — with more than 125 boats in the water and nearly 100 accessory displays in tents ringing the marina basin — greeted the lawmakers and other attendees with mostly rain.

“Saturday and Sunday had exceptional attendance, and we saw many good prospects and closed sales,” says Jim Armington of Buckeye Sports Center. “Most customers also commented on how great the show looked and how many boats and accessory displays there were. Even more, the show definitely proved there are still lots of buyers out there if you reach out to them with a strong message and experience.”

Rockey Piacentino of Catawba Moorings echoed that sentiment. “This was a fantastic show by LEMTA’s staff and a great job by the CIC [Catawba Island Club] crew. All the entertainment, food and, especially, the work of the CIC grounds people were outstanding. We are projecting our overall sales will make this one of the best shows we’ve had there in four years. It’s been a big weekend for our regulators.”