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On February 4, NMMA Northeast Government Relations Manager Sam Romano testified before the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR), urging the state to withdraw proposed changes to the Use of Public Waters rule related to wakesurfing. Speaking on behalf of NMMA, Romano emphasized that the proposal is arbitrary, not supported by science, and unnecessary given that Vermont’s existing wakesurfing standards—implemented in 2024—have resulted in zero credible violations. 

NMMA noted that wake boats accounts for less than one percent of boats statewide and warned that the proposal would unnecessarily restrict access, reducing eligible lakes from 30 to 18 and increasing congestion elsewhere. Romano highlighted that the rule’s 3,000-foot lake-length requirement is disconnected from real-world boating conditions and ignores more meaningful, enforceable factors such as distance from shore, operator behavior, and traffic patterns. NMMA stressed that education—not overregulation—is the appropriate path forward and concluded that the proposal would create new problems rather than solve existing ones.

For additional information, please contact NMMA’s Northeast Government Relations Manager Sam Romano at [email protected].