Recreational boating and fishing industry leaders have been meeting with federal and local lawmakers to discuss challenges facing our industry and opportunities to improve boating policy. At the top of everyone’s agenda has been the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s proposed expansion of its North Atlantic Right Whale Vessel Strike Reduction Rule and the harm it will cause for the boating and fishing communities, and local economies, along the Atlantic coast.

NOAA’s proposed rule would require recreational boats as small as 35 feet to travel no faster than 10 knots — slower than the average speed of a bicycle — in Atlantic coastal waters stretching from Massachusetts to central Florida for up to seven months a year. Opposition to NOAA’s proposed rule intensified this summer due in large part to concerns about the rule’s impact on boater safety, coastal economies and marine businesses. At a recent hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries, I testified about how the rule would harm coastal communities while failing to adequately protect the North Atlantic right whale population.

Here is an excerpt from that June 6 testimony: “The marine industry can be passionate about whale protection and vehemently against this ill-conceived and overreaching regulation. It is a false choice to state that Americans must choose between saving whales and allowing public access that provides economic security for small businesses. We can do both.”

The hearing also included testimony from a New Jersey-based charter skipper, Capt. Frank Gamboa. Gamboa spoke about how this rule would affect his small business: “Without well-managed and productive oceans, I don’t have a job. I view this issue as one where we don’t have to pick a side — boats versus whales. I am committed to protecting whales. I am also for my business and the workers I employ. The proposed rule, as written, does not accommodate those two opinions.”

While NOAA’s proposal would initially only affect communities on the East Coast, lawmakers from other parts of the country have concerns that their regions could be targeted next. In the same hearing, U.S. Rep. Mary Sattler Peltola, D-Alaska, said: “I am very concerned about the proposed rule limiting vessel speeds, which could cause severe unintended consequences — especially in Alaska — if they are adopted on a broad basis. Alaska is very dependent on fishing and tourism, with many small charter operators whose operations can be disrupted by slow or unclear speed limits.”

These concerns led Peltola to co-sponsor, along with U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., bipartisan legislation that would block NOAA from issuing the expanded rule until technological solutions recently authorized by Congress can help track whales in real time to help avoid strikes.

Peltola and Carter’s legislation mirrors the Protecting Whales, Human Safety and the Economy Act of 2023, which was previously introduced by U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and John Boozman, R-Ark. Manchin said that bill would “prevent yet another example of dangerous federal overreach that would place unnecessary burdens on our seasonal fishermen, boat manufacturers and the coastal economies that rely on them.”

Bipartisan disapproval of NOAA’s proposed overreach continues to grow. In July, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus held a briefing on the proposed rule. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle expressed frustration with how it could harm local economies.

“Yes, we want to protect the right whales, but we want to do it the right way,” Carter said. “If this rule goes through, this will devastate recreational fishing.”

The U.S. recreational boating industry supports more than 36,000 businesses, most of which are small businesses, and has an annual impact of $230 billion in the United States. The industry also generates more than 812,000 American jobs, more than 100,000 of which are new since 2018.

“This is America. We can figure out ways to where you can continue fishing, you can continue boating, you’re not going to jeopardize your economy, your ports, your economic activity, trade,” said U.S. Rep. Garret Graves, R-La. “And the way you do it isn’t anything new. You do real-time monitoring.”

Boater safety is also a significant concern. Experts have expressed alarm about NOAA’s lack of safety consideration. Most smaller boats that would be included under the expanded 10-knot speed limit are not designed to operate at such low speeds. In the event of high winds, many recreational boats would risk capsizing.

NOAA’s attempts at overreach aren’t limited to the Atlantic Coast; the agency also is considering a speed-reduction rule in the Gulf of Mexico to protect the Rice’s whale. But again, NOAA lacks the data to back up its proposal. In fact, there hasn’t been a single documented case of a recreational vessel striking a Rice’s whale.

Boaters and anglers are understandably outraged by the new proposal. Together, we are pushing back. The recreational boating and fishing community submitted more than 6,000 comments through boatingunited.org urging the Biden administration to stop to this heavy-handed proposal and look instead for a more balanced approach that protects Rice’s whales while keeping in mind the impact that over-regulation not based on data can have on local economies.

As opposition to NOAA’s overreach continues to grow on Capitol Hill and in America’s coastal communities, it is becoming increasingly clear that NOAA did not consider the full impact this rule would have on local economies, American jobs and boater safety.

Everyone wants to play their part in protecting marine wildlife, and the next steps are clear: Regulators must work with the boating industry, small coastal businesses, boaters and other stakeholders to find solutions that can protect marine wildlife while ensuring that coastal economies remain strong and vibrant. 

Frank Hugelmeyer is president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

This article was originally published in the September 2023 issue.