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From the Desk of…..Jamy Buchanan Madeja, Esq.
MMTA Legal and Government Relations Counsel
1. U.S. EPA Enforcement and Compliance Report
The Environmental Protection Agency Region One, which covers Massachusetts, has appointed a new Director of the Office of Environmental Stewardship. Susan Studlien is a longtime EPA manager, but newly arrived in the Environmental Stewardship office, which includes Enforcement.
MMTA members interested in and concerned with potential enforcement priorities at the EPA should review the highlights below of a recent presentation Studlien gave, covering the EPA's accomplishments in 2006 and what will likely be its focus in 2007.
ENFORCEMENT
- In 2006, the EPA conducted more than 1,100 on-site inspections
- More than 60 facilities voluntarily disclosed and corrected violations
- Violators spent $1.6 million on Supplemental Environmental Projects
- 56 Administrative Orders issued
- 93 Administrative Penalties issued
- 12 Civil Regulatory Referrals were made to the Department of Justice
- $2.6 million paid in penalties
Studlien noted a large jump in 2006 inspections from the previous year; but since some inspectors have retired or moved on, she said it may be difficult to meet the same numbers in 2007. In the summer of 2006, the EPA brought five enforcement actions against marina and boatyard facilities in New England; the penalties ranged from $3,000 to $52,300. The charges included:
- Failing to make adequate hazardous waste determinations
- Failing to properly operate and maintain their facility to minimize hazardous waste
- Failing to have an adequate hazardous waste training program
- Transporting hazardous waste without a permit
- Discharging storm water without a permit
- Violating storage and handing of hazardous materials
- Violating storm water discharges
- Violating oil pollution prevention requirements
- Failing to have a Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure Plan to minimize risk from oil spills
COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE
- 141 workshops conducted
- 34,000 individuals reached
More information can be found at http://www.epa.gov/region1/enforcementandassistance/
ONGOING GOALS
Marinas present serious issues, Studlien said, because they don't have the expertise to handle environmental management issues. Chemical management is an ongoing issue and the EPA is advocating the Audit Policy and Small Business Compliance Policy to provide incentives for businesses to self-police, as well as outreach to industry, state and local officials to increase compliance assessment.
Similarly, storm water was considered a national priority in 2006 and Studlien said she expects it to carry into 2007.
CLEAN MARINE ENGINE PROGRAM
The EPA's Clean Marine Engine Initiative was specifically recognized. Its goal for EPA is to accelerate the sale of low-pollution two- and four-stroke marine engines. Studlien noted a successful partnership between marine manufacturers, retailers, trade associations (that's MMTA!) and federal and state environmental agencies. According to their statistics, the first three years of the Clean Marine Engine Program resulted in 80% of new outboard engine sales being clean engine sales. The EPA has a list available to the public on its website of clean marine engine dealers: http://www.epa.gov/ne/assistance/cmei/ma_retail.html
More information on the EPA's Clean Marine Engine Initiative can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/ne/assistance/cmei/links.html
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2. New Legislative Cycle Heats Up
With the New Year comes a new, two-year legislative cycle on Beacon Hill, as well as a new Patrick Murray executive branch administration. More than 6,500 new bills have already been filed by the General Court, and MMTA is in the process of screening every one of them. Many new appointments have also been made in the executive branch, with more to come.
Last year's abandoned vessel bill, which would ease the burden on marinas and boatyards pursing delinquent customers, primarily sponsored by Chairman Anthony Verga (D-Gloucester) has been refiled and there are high hopes for its successful passage because it did very well last session, in its maiden voyage. It simply ran out of time getting through the legislative process at the year-end bottle neck which plagued thousands of bills. We were successful in securing the support of over 50 legislators, and attracted no opponents. The proposal to institute mandatory boater education was also refilled by Chairman Verga, with provisions satisfying MMTA that the education requirements would not burden boat sales. We will remain attentive to be sure any education requirements are feasibly obtained at many locations and times statewide.
An entirely new bill, filled by Senator Michael Morrissey (D-Quincy) would amend the Chapter 91, Section 10A moorings permit requirements to make it express and clear by statute that of course marinas, boatyards and yacht clubs can manage mooring fields and assign moorings to their members, customers and patrons, as has been done for many many decades. As soon as the text is officially published, we will provide it to you. For now, here is a copy of the draft bill:
"The harbormaster may issue mooring permits to any individual or entity, including to public or private facilities, and to for-profit or non-profit entities for rental or leasing purposes on an annual basis. Any individual or entity which leases or rents permitted moorings shall annually provide the harbormaster with a list of vessels moored on the permitted mooring. Mooring permits assigned to entities which lease or rent moorings shall be renewed annually absent demonstration of cause pursuant to a due process hearing. Mooring permit holders which lease or rent permitted moorings shall also be responsible for fair and equitable assignment of any vacant moorings. Methods of fair and equitable assignment for all moorings may include but are not limited to one or more of the following: (1) date of application; (2) physical characteristics of the vessel; (3) purpose of the vessel; and (4) renewal or issuance of a mooring assignment to individual members, patrons, or customers, including but not limited to members, patrons and customers of a for profit or non-profit facility."
Bill numbers and committee assignments for public hearings will be assigned in weeks to come. We'll be tracking legislative movement and keep you informed. Your comments for the public hearing on all bills will be extremely important. Thank you in advance for your participation in securing and advancing our future.
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3. Governor Patrick's Appointments and Staff Selections To Date
Staff
- Chief of Staff - Joan Wallace Benjamin
- 1st Deputy Chief of Staff - David Simas. Previously Deputy General Counsel to House of Representatives Post Audit and Oversight Bureau.
- 2nd Deputy Chief of Staff - Brendan Ryan. Previously Deputy Finance Director to Patrick campaign.
- 3rd Deputy Chief of Staff/Communications Director - Nancy Fernandez Mills. Previously a producer and correspondent for NBC News in New England.
- Director of Policy and Cabinet Affairs - Richard Chacon. Previously a campaign manager for Patrick, after more than a decade at the Boston Globe.
- Press Secretary to the Governor - Kyle Sullivan. Previously Director of Communications and Chief Counsel for Education Policy for Speaker DiMasi's office.
- Deputy Press Secretary to the Governor - Cindy Roy. Previously Communications Director for the Massachusetts Democratic Party.
- Deputy Press Secretary to the Governor - Jose Martinez. Boston Herald reporter.
- Director of Governmental Affairs for the Governor - Mike Morris. Previously Government Affairs Director for State Treasurer Cahill.
- Director of Scheduling - Christy Mach. Previously campaign scheduler.
- Chief Legal Counsel - Ben Clements. Federal prosecutor, friend of Patrick on campaign. Worked with him at Hill & Barlow.
- Chief of Staff and Legal Counsel to the Governor - James Leary.
Cabinet Positions
- Administration and Finance Secretary - Leslie Kirwan. Previously director of administration and finance at Massport.
- Secretary of Health and Human Services - Dr. JudyAnn Bigby. Previously Medical Director of Community Health Programs at Brigham & Women's'.
- Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development - Suzanne Bump. Previously a partner at McDevitt & Bump, P.C., and Political Director on the Patrick campaign.
- Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs - Ian Bowles. Previously president and CEO of MassINC research institute and publisher of CommonWealth magazine.
- Undersecretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs - Ann Berwick. Previously and Environmental Consultant at M.J. Bradley & Associates.
- Chief of Staff - Jane Corr. Was on campaign.
- Undersecretary for Environment - Philip Griffiths. Previously at DEP, Acting Chief of Staff.
- Assistant Secretary for Policy - David Cash. Previously EOEA Dir. of Air, Energy & Waste Policy.
- Assistant Secretary for Communications and Public Affairs - Robert Keough. Previously editor of CommonWealth magazine.
- Department of Conservation & Recreations (Acting Commissioner) - Pricilla Geigis. Previously EOEA general counsel and Dir. Community Preservation.
- Department of Agriculture Resources (Acting Commissioner) - Scott Soares. From within DAR.
- Department of Fish & Game (Acting Commissioner) - Thomas French. From within, director of Natural Heritage and Endangered Species.
- Department of Environmental Protection (Acting Commissioner) - Arleen O'Donnell. Previously in DEP.
- Secretary of Public Safety - Kevin Burke. Previously partner at Burke & Mawn Consultants, a public safety consulting firm.
- Undersecretary of Homeland Security - Juliette Kayyem. Was on National Commission on Terrorism, legal advisor to AG Reno.
- Undersecretary of Law Enforcement - Kurt Schwartz. Was AG's Chief of Criminal Bureau.
- Undersecretary of Criminal Justice - Mary Elizabeth Heffernan. Associate Gen. Counsel at Beth Israel, Middlesex county prosecutor.
- Secretary of Housing and Economic Development - Dan O'Connell. Previously executive president and partner at Meredith & Grew's development and advisory services group.
- Secretary of Transportation - Bernard Cohen. Was MBTA director, also Federal Transit Administration rebuilding after 9/11.
- Secretary of Elder Affairs - Jennifer Davis. Was same under Romney.
- Secretary of Veterans' Services - Thomas Kelly. Was same under Romney.
Special Advisors
- Special Advisor to the Governor for Economic Development - Dan Bosley. Previously 10-term State Representative from First Berkshire district.
- Special Advisor to the Governor for Education - Dr. Dana Mohler-Faria. Previously president of Bridgewater State College.
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4. MMTA's Recreational Boating Agenda for the New Administration
MMTA provided Governor Patrick with a summary of key recreational boating agenda items as he took office. A copy of the document is below:
A RECREATIONAL BOATING AGENDA FOR MASSACHUSETTS
Established in 1964, the MMTA is the statewide, representative body for over 1,200 marine trades businesses in the Commonwealth. Our businesses employ over 27,000 men and women and generate an estimated $1.7 billion in annual economic activity for Massachusetts. The mission of the Association is to further the interests of the marine trades and the boating public through the promotion of boating, participation in legislation and professional improvement programs. The Association also seeks to stem the exodus of recreational boating businesses from the Commonwealth and the loss of water's edge usage for recreational boating purposes.
The Association acts as a source of information about recreational boating and boating businesses for the general public, via its website at www.boatma.com; for the Massachusetts Legislature, where the Association is a frequent participant in public hearings and in the 50-member Legislative Boating Caucus; and for executive branch agencies and authorities with regulatory and economic development responsibilities.
MMTA Government Relations Priorities
- Improve public access to the waterways
- Relieve the dramatic and growing shortage of slips and moorings
- Support "no net loss" policies for existing slips and moorings
- Establish incentives for increasing recreational boating opportunities. Examples could include
- Support requirements for local and state public land owning entities to study and report how boating access could be enhanced using publicly owned lands
- Reduce permitting time for new location and/or expansion of existing marinas and boatyards, via:
- Maintenance dredging eased permitting processes
- Improvement dredging - statewide need for comprehensive permitting streamlining, possibly a Generic Environmental Impact Report
- Public permitting of dredged spoil disposal sites, adequate to meet projected needs
- One single application for all state waterways required approvals, including Chapter 91, Wetlands Protection Act, Water Quality Certification and, to the extent possible, Army Corps of Engineers and National Pollution Discharge Elimination System.
- Mandatory, reasonable timeframes for action on the combined application.
- MEPA support for recreational boating projects, including dredging
- Improve implementation of M.G.L. Chapter 91 to enhance public access to the waterways for recreational boating use
- Enhance Commonwealth pursuit of more United States Army Corps of Engineers funding for maintenance of waterways navigable for recreational boating purposes
- Support renewed public Coastal Infrastructure Grants for seawall and dredging improvements to enhance recreational boating opportunities
- Increase public access ramps for recreational boats: Secure and increase the operating budget and capital spending allocation for the Office of Fishing & Boating, to remain a specialized construction and operation unit within the Department of Fish &, Game
- Reinvigorate the Boating Infrastructure Grant program, possibly with particular pilot project
- Assure any new Ocean Management laws 1) do respect Public Trust Rights for recreational boaters to navigate the ocean, requiring mitigation for any abridgment of navigational rights; and 2) do not duplicate existing laws regulating marinas and boatyards' water's edge locations
- Improve education for employment in the marine trades
- Secure Mass Marine Trades Education Trust Grant for Cordage Park program
- Secure public secondary school programs for marine trades training, available to every secondary school student in the Commonwealth, if desired
- Support increased funding for marine education programs, including retraining
- Enhance the Commonwealth's competitiveness in relation to neighboring states
- Eliminate boat sales tax
- Pass Abandoned Vessel legislation (HB 4362)
- Secure the Interagency Recreational Boating Working Group, as an established executive branch interagency working group, with blessing of Patrick-Murray administration, as a subcommittee to the Seaport Advisory Council
- Expand executive agencies' participation in the Legislative Boating Caucus
Thanks to each and every one of you for helping us make Massachusetts a better place to boat and to be a boating business (try saying that three times!). Should you have any questions, please contact MMTA's Government Relations and Legal Counsel Jamy Buchanan Madeja, Esq. (617-227-8410; jmadeja@buchananassociates.com) or Public Affairs Director Nathalie Grady (978-808-1408; nathalie.grady@comcast.net).
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ONGOING REMINDERS TO MEMBERS AND LINKS OF INTEREST
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MA Legislation That MMTA Tracks:
http://www.boatma.com/membersonly/legal/2006/
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BOATER INFORMATION PIPELINE SIGNUP:
http://www.boatma.com/boatersenewssignupform.html
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MAKE THE MMTA JOBS BULLETIN BOARD WORK FOR YOU!
http://www.boatma.com/jobs/bbs.pl
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MARINE TRADES EDUCATORS WISH LIST
http://www.boatma.com/membersonly/news/bbs.pl
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SHOW YOUR COLORS
Proudly Display the MMTA Logo: http://www.boatma.com/membersonly/mmtalogos.html
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MMTA-STAPLES BUSINESS ADVANTAGE PROGRAM
MMTA Members Only Section click on the STAPLES LOGO.
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