Releases – October 10, 2013
Fee increases and changes in vessel registration and titling resulting from the N.C. General Assembly’s passage of Senate Bill 402 went into effect Oct. 1, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission announced recently.
The new fees for registering and titling a vessel in North Carolina will be:
1-Year Registration Fees: Vessels less than 26 feet—$30; Vessels 26 feet or greater—$50.
3-Year Registration Fees: Vessels less than 26 feet—$90; Vessels 26 feet or greater—$150.
Titling Fees: New or Transfer Title—$30.
Two other vessel registration changes took effect Oct. 1 as well. The first change requires an owner of a vessel documented with the U.S. Coast Guard to register the vessel in North Carolina if the vessel is in the state for more than 90 consecutive days. Federal law prohibits documented vessels from being titled in North Carolina.
The second change eliminates the free, one-year vessel registration renewal for those who have a commercial fishing license. To renew a vessel registration, commercial fishing license owners will pay the normal rate, which is based on the vessel length.
The fee increases were the result of recent legislation passed by the N.C. General Assembly as part of the state budget act, section 14.22 of Senate Bill 402. The law established the new registration fees and requires the Wildlife Resources Commission to transfer 50 percent of fees to the New Shallow Draft Navigation Channel and Lake Dredging Fund.
“The General Assembly recognized a need to find funding to maintain and dredge shallow draft inlets and navigation channels—many of which have historically been maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” said Wildlife Resources Commission Executive Director Gordon Myers. “Over the past 15 years, these federal funds have been reduced or eliminated, and other states and local governments have created similar funding sources to maintain their waterways due to the decrease in federal funds. The funds can be used for dredging in coastal and inland waters, and any local government applying for the funds has to provide a 50 percent match.”
For additional information about vessel registration and titling, call the Commission at (800) 628-3773 or visit www.ncwildlife.org/vesselregistration.
North Carolina Sea Grant and the N.C. Coastal Reserve (NCCR) are accepting applications for the joint 2014 Coastal Research Fellowship Program.
This fellowship is designed to foster research within the boundaries of the NCCR and address a coastal management issue in the following focus areas: exploring linkages between estuarine ecology and eutrophication; understanding impacts of storms on coastal communities and habitats; ensuring a sustainable seafood supply; understanding changing land-use impacts on estuarine systems; and evaluating estuarine shoreline stabilization options.
This opportunity is open to graduate students in good academic standing and attending an accredited North Carolina university or college. Two successful applicants will receive a grant of $10,000 each toward research costs and stipends for the 2014 calendar year. Funds will be channeled through the fellow’s major professor, who must agree to serve as principal investigator on the project.
The proposed work must be conducted within the boundaries of one of the 10 reserve sites that make up the NCCR system: Currituck Banks, Kitty Hawk Woods, Emily and Richardson Preyer Buckridge, Buxton Woods, Rachel Carson, Permuda Island, Masonboro Island, Zeke’s Island, Bald Head Woods, and Bird Island.
Applications are due by 4:00 p.m., Oct. 25, 2013. The successful candidates will be notified by Nov. 15, 2013. To view the full request for proposals, visit www.ncseagrant.org/s/nccr-2014. Contact John Fear at john.fear@ncdenr.gov or Susan White at snwhite3@ncsu.edu with questions.
Read about the work of previous fellows in Coastwatch: Michelle Brodeur on Rachel Carson Reserve at www.ncseagrant.org/s/cwsu11-brod, Kristen Hall on Masonboro Island at www.ncseagrant.org/s/cwa11-hall and Teri O’Meara on Rachel Carson Reserve and other Outer Banks locations at www.ncseagrant.org/s/cwsp13-omear.
The NCCR is a program of the N.C. Division of Coastal Management in the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources and includes the N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve.
NOAA Fisheries requests comments on proposed regulations to implement Amendment 27 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region. The proposed rule for Amendment 27 published in the Federal Register on September 27, 2013, (78 FR 59635).
The Proposed Rule for Amendment 27 would:
(1) Extend the South Atlantic Council’s management responsibility for Nassau grouper to include the Gulf of Mexico.
(2) Increase the number of allowable crew members on dual permitted vessels (vessels that have both a federal South Atlantic Charter/Headboat Permit for Snapper-Grouper and a South Atlantic Unlimited or 225-Pound Snapper-Grouper Permit) from three to four crew members.
(3) Allow captains and crew of for-hire vessels with federal South Atlantic Charter/Headboat Snapper-Grouper Permits to retain bag limit quantities of all snapper-grouper species.
(4) Remove blue runner from the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region.
Comments on the proposed rule must be received no later than October 28, 2013, to be considered by NOAA Fisheries.
Amendment 27 and the proposed rule may be obtained from:
(1) The NOAA Fisheries Web site http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/s_atl/sg/2013/am27/index.html.
(2) The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s Web site at http://www.safmc.net.
You may submit comments by the following methods:
(3) Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2013-0085 click the “Comment Now!” icon, complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
(4) Mail: NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office, Sustainable Fisheries Division, c/o Kate Michie, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701.
NOAA Fisheries will accept anonymous comments. Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file formats only. Comments received through means not specified in this bulletin may not be considered.
For more information on Amendment 27, please click on the link to the Amendment 27 Frequently Asked Questions found at: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/s_atl/sg/2013/am27/index.html.
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has exempted surfboards, tubes, swimming rafts, and inflatable toys from the requirement to carry personal flotation devices (PFDs), also known as life vests.
The action was taken during the August meeting of the Wildlife Commission. It had been demonstrated that requiring PFDs for these types of floating devices did not enhance safety significantly. Prior to the rule change, anyone on such floating devices outside of a designated swimming area was required to carry a PFD.
The Commission also clarified the definition of competitive paddle or rowing vessels under boating safety rules. The definition now reads those manually propelled vessels “that are recognized by national and international racing associations for use in competitive racing and in which all occupants row, scull, or paddle, with exception of a coxswain, if one is provided, and are not designed to carry any equipment not solely for competitive racing such as racing shells, rowing sculls, racing canoes and racing kayaks, are exempt from requirements for any type of PFD.”
Paddleboards, kayaks, canoes, and rowboats are not exempt and must have accessible for each person onboard a Type I, II or III PFD in good condition and of appropriate size.
