Posted on 02/03/2021 10:32:58 AM PST by llevrok
SPOKANE, Wash. — Thousands have signed a petition urging the Washington Legislature to "say no" to a bill that would put new safety rules in place for kayakers, standup paddleboarders and others.
House Bill 1018 would require anyone operating a "human-powered" vessel in Washington to take a boater education course and purchase a boater education card for $10. This means kayaks, canoes, rafts, standup paddleboards and other vessels would fall under the same set of rules as motorboats in the state.
Five Washington state representatives are sponsoring the bill. It was introduced in the House on Jan. 11, 2021 and has since been referred to the the Committee on Community and Economic Development.
Under the bill, anyone without a boater education in their possession would be subject to an infraction. The penalty would be waived if the boater provided proof to the court within 60 days that they received a boater education card.
More than 11,000 people have signed a Change.org petition against the bill in two weeks. Scott Holley, the man who started the petition, says the requirements would "create unnecessary burdens on Washington residents in ways that will make it more difficult for lower-income individuals to participate."
"Paddling is an ideal sport for the COVID-19 era. It promotes physical as well as mental health," the petition reads. "We should be encouraging and not discouraging outdoor paddlesport recreation."
It doesn’t matter, THREE TIMES Washington state people have passed a $30 car tab fee and THREE TIMES the government decided they could just ignore it.
Just like voting for the president, IT REALLY DOESN’T MATTER!
It is an ILLUSION!!!
So you have to take the card out on the water with you. Sounds like a great opportunity for it to get lost or ruined.
A couple of years ago a referendum(?) passed to do this with firearms. One has to take a safety class and get a card in order to buy a gun. Have to take a class every 5 years.
And paddle boards aren’t even a God-given right!
“Even an inner tube at the lake could be classed as a “human powered vessel”.”
There was actually a “tubing while intoxicated” ticket issued near me.
The nanny state never stops trying to extend its reach.
Why not just require kayaks to be built or modified to have outriggers on each side, to make them less likely to turn over. In the name of safety of course. We can’t have unstable kayaks being paddled up a river without a paddle.
Not all of them are libs.
Any body who fights this want to kill children
Ever seen a Kayaker just about get sucked under a barge?
Seen it a few times.
Or my favorite, the bicyclists who think that stop signs should not apply to them. Saw a group pile into a car (who had the right of way), and then go get mad.
If you are kayaking on a non navigable waterway, go ahead. You play in the Mississippi river or a shipping channel you need to know that the Big Ships will not stop even after they run over you. A class explaining that “A barge can not stop. Stay out of the main channel if you don’t want to get hit.”
And even more simply, you should pay for the resources you use. I pay a lot road taxes for those bike lanes, those self righteous idiots should pay for a bit also.
“Not all of them are libs.”
Most.
I’m sure you deserve to suffer along with those that voted for Biden.
“I’m sure you deserve to suffer along with those that voted for Biden.”
I can withstand it better than most. Bring it.
It won’t get better until you break them. If they don’t break, we never had a chance anyway.
“Its hard to think of a single word or concept that has done more damage to the American psyche in the last thirty years than *safe*.”
“Abundance of caution” is another phrase that needs to be over.
L
Washington went 58% Biden. F’them. Have fun in your liberal Utopia.
The need to have a $1000 annual registration fee for kayaks there so as to fund the supervisors who come up with these critical new safety rules.
Only if they are required to register their kayak, for a small $500 fee of course.
They will wave (ha ha play on words) the $500 kayak fee and start a buy back program of $600 per kayak, to help curb the violence of kayaking.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.