HB-1478 is flawed for the following reasons:

• There are most likely not many active dock designers and installers in the state.  Let’s say there are 100 people actively involved in the dock business…this means only $10,000.00 will be collected every two years from licensing.  This is not even enough for DES to administer licensing, rule-making, and tracking.  This bill is not financially viable as the biennial fees of $100.00 will most likely not even cover the administrative costs required to run the program.

 There is little, if any, consistency under present DES decision making and it is impossible to educate and/or train licensees under the ever changing internal policies at the Wetlands Bureau.  The goal posts are always moving.  How can one get licensed if the rules do not accurately represent the decision making climate?

• This bill states that no one may “…design or construct…” docks without a permit.  It is unreasonable to prohibit dock construction by anyone as there are many contractors/handymen who may build a single dock from time to time and there is simply no way to track this information.

• This bill states “…design or construction docks or docking facilities…” yet this term is not defined.  What is a “docking facility”?  What are the limits of this term?  Are swim ladders, diving boards, tie posts, boatlifts, beaches, boathouses, etc. considered under the broad scope of this term?

• Is dock repair considered “construction”?  If not, then at what point do repairs become “construction”?

• DES presently has difficulty keeping up with rule-making.  How can the Wetlands Bureau possibly have time to develop and implement rules for a program of such narrow scope?

• DES often issues orders and directives that are inaccurate and based upon incorrect assumptions.  How can one’s license be at risk under assumed guilt, especially as there is not necessarily proof of who specifically did something wrong, without a proper hearing and review of the facts at hand?

• A better solution would be to work to improve the shoreline structure rules and permit process!

We are going to be using this as a place to answer your questions and keep people updated with recent news.

Enjoy!