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Senators Lead Bipartisan Effort To Recover Fishing And Boating Investments
by Janet Tennyson

Senators John Breaux of Louisiana and Trent Lott of Mississippi introduced this week S. 2019, a measure to safeguard anglers and boaters' investments in fishing and boating access and quality by recovering the full amount of excise taxes they contribute under the Sport Fish Restoration Act. The Senate bill mirrors the Sportfishing and Boating Equity Act of 2003, legislation introduced in the House of Representatives in July 2003 by Congressman Clay Shaw of Florida and now co-sponsored by 22 other Members of Congress.

“The legislation Senator Breaux and Senator Lott introduced would add $110 million annually under the Sport Fish Restoration Act, which will mean at least an additional $1.1 million for each state’s fishing and boating programs every year,” said Mike Nussman, President and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association. Nussman also chairs the American League of Anglers and Boaters, a coalition of 32 partners working toward reauthorization of the Sport Fish Restoration Act and promoting legislative measures to recover this funding.

“We should be dedicating 100 percent of this Aquatic Resources Trust Fund to all valuable boating and fishing programs that benefit from the Wallop-Breaux legislation, ranging from boat safety programs to coastal wetlands restoration,” said Senator John Breaux. “Wallop-Breaux was specifically designed so users pay for these programs through the fuel taxes they pay, and this legislation will rightfully return those funds to help everyone who enjoys fishing and boating in Louisiana and nationwide.”

“I’m a strong advocate of reserving all the motorboat fuel tax revenue in the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund to support infrastructure improvements and promote a clean, safe environment for the tax paying boating and fishing public,” said Senator Trent Lott. “This practice of directing all fuel tax revenues into trust funds has been a boon for supporting federal highway and aviation needs, and I advocate its adoption for aquatic transportation as well.”

For more than 10 years, only 75 percent of anglers and boaters' federal motor boat fuel taxes has been directed to the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund, a user-pay fund that provides revenues for fishing and boating programs across the nation. Congress required the U.S. Treasury to redirect 25 percent of the excise taxes on motor boat and small engine fuels each year to the General Treasury Fund instead of channeling these revenues to the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund.

The Sport Fish Restoration Act set up the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund as the collection point for motor boat fuel taxes and other excise taxes on fishing gear. Altogether the fund amounts to about $450 million per year, which is ultimately parceled to state fish and wildlife agencies as a primary source of their overall funding. Motor boat fuel taxes make up $284 million of that amount. The current tax is 18.3 cents per gallon, yet only 13.5 cents out of that 18.3 are currently being channeled to the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund.

The new legislation would ensure the full amount is channeled to the fund to ensure revenues are used to enhance fishing and boating as the Sport Fish Restoration Act intended. Under its provisions, the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund is to be used for fisheries monitoring; habitat conservation and restoration; fishing and boating access facilities such as docks, piers, and boat ramps; and education and safety programs for anglers and boaters.

“Senator John Breaux is a long-time champion for anglers and boaters and we're pleased that Senator Trent Lott has joined him in this bipartisan effort to assure that all of anglers and boaters’ fuel tax dollars are properly directed to the fund that makes possible most of the resource management and facilities associated with fishing and boating,” said Gordon Robertson, Vice President of the American Sportfishing Association. “The fishing and boating community is extremely pleased that two senior Senators have joined forces to introduce this legislation. It is a great example of how partnerships in the conservation arena can and do work.”

The American Sportfishing Association is the sportfishing industry’s trade association, uniting more than 600 members of the sportfishing and boating industries with state fish and wildlife agencies, federal land and water management agencies, conservation organizations, angler advocacy groups, and outdoor journalists. The American Sportfishing Association safeguards and promotes the enduring social, economic, and conservation values of sportfishing.

Note: See breakdown below of how the potential monies would be parceled to states.

 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Final Apportionment of Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Funds for Fiscal Year 2003
State	FY2003 Final Apportionment (Actual)	Potential New Funds to State w/4.8 c tax
ALABAMA	$3,935,974	$1,632,315
ALASKA	$13,262,060	$5,500,000
ARIZONA	$5,588,641	$2,317,704
ARKANSAS	$4,976,294	$2,063,753
CALIFORNIA	$13,262,060	$5,500,000
COLORADO	$6,768,365	$2,806,955
CONNECTICUT	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
DELAWARE	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA	$884,137	$366,667
FLORIDA	$7,422,277	$3,078,143
GEORGIA	$4,974,514	$2,063,015
HAWAII	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
IDAHO	$4,579,437	$1,899,170
ILLINOIS	$5,336,662	$2,213,204
INDIANA	$4,085,311	$1,694,247
IOWA	$3,602,952	$1,494,205
KANSAS	$3,919,441	$1,625,458
KENTUCKY	$4,186,668	$1,736,282
LOUISIANA	$4,726,339	$1,960,092
MAINE	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
MARYLAND	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
MASSACHUSETTS	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
MICHIGAN	$8,946,956	$3,710,453
MINNESOTA	$10,065,088	$4,174,162
MISSISSIPPI	$3,445,468	$1,428,894
MISSOURI	$6,366,300	$2,640,212
MONTANA	$6,198,060	$2,570,440
NEBRASKA	$3,343,038	$1,386,414
NEVADA	$4,092,296	$1,697,144
NEW HAMPSHIRE	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
NEW JERSEY	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
NEW MEXICO	$4,762,323	$1,975,016
NEW YORK	$6,582,873	$2,730,028
NORTH CAROLINA	$4,672,046	$1,937,576
NORTH DAKOTA	$2,885,004	$1,196,460
OHIO	$5,898,692	$2,446,287
OKLAHOMA	$5,185,748	$2,150,617
OREGON	$6,064,454	$2,515,031
PENNSYLVANIA	$6,586,588	$2,731,569
RHODE ISLAND	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
SOUTH CAROLINA	$3,247,558	$1,346,817
SOUTH DAKOTA	$3,309,311	$1,372,427
TENNESSEE	$5,991,907	$2,484,945
TEXAS	$13,262,060	$5,500,000
UTAH	$4,685,429	$1,943,126
VERMONT	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
VIRGINIA	$4,317,041	$1,790,350
WASHINGTON	$5,485,151	$2,274,785
WEST VIRGINIA	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
WISCONSIN	$8,607,773	$3,569,788
WYOMING	$4,363,414	$1,809,581
PUERTO RICO	$2,652,413	$1,100,000
AMERICAN SAMOA	$884,137	$366,667
GUAM	$884,137	$366,667
N. MARIANA ISLANDS	$884,137	$366,667
U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS	$884,137	$366,667
TOTAL	$265,241,214	$110,000,000

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