§200-10  Permits and fees for state smallboat harbors.  (a)  No person shall moor a vessel in a state small boatharbor without:

(1)  First obtaining a use permit from the department;and

(2)  Being the owner of the vessel.

(b)  In order to obtain a permit or a permitrenewal, the owner of a vessel shall provide, at the owner's own expense:

(1)  A marine surveyor's inspection no more than twoyears old, certifying that the surveyor has inspected the vessel and considersit to fulfill the requirements set by the department; and

(2)  Documentation that the person is the owner of thevessel.  The documentation shall meet requirements established by thedepartment.

(c)  The permittee shall pay moorage fees tothe department for the use permit that shall be based on, but not limited to,the use of the vessel, its effect on the harbor, use of facilities, and thecost of administering this mooring program; and, furthermore:

(1)  Moorage fees shall be established by thedepartment and shall be higher for nonresidents;

(2)  An application fee shall be collected whenapplying for moorage in state small boat harbors and shall thereafter becollected annually when the application is renewed.  The application fee shallbe:

(A)  Set by the department; and

(B)  Not less than $100 for nonresidents;

(3)  If a recreational vessel is used as a place ofprincipal habitation, the permittee shall pay, in addition to the moorage fee,a liveaboard fee that shall be calculated at a rate of:

(A)  $5.20 a foot of vessel length a month ifthe permittee is a state resident; and

(B)  $7.80 a foot of vessel length a month ifthe permittee is a nonresident;

provided that the liveaboard fees established bythis paragraph may be increased by the department at the rate of the annual cost-of-livingindex, but not more than five per cent in any one year, beginningJanuary 1 of each year; and

(4)  If a vessel is used for commercial purposes fromits permitted mooring, the permittee shall pay, in lieu of the moorage andliveaboard fee, a fee based on three per cent of the gross revenues derivedfrom the use of the vessel or two times the moorage fee assessed for arecreational vessel of the same size, whichever is greater.

(d)  The department shall not renew or issue apermit to a person who is not the owner of the vessel which is moored or whichthe person desires to moor in a state small boat harbor.  Any individual who isan owner of a vessel used for commercial purposes, including commercial fishingas a principal means of livelihood, and possesses a valid mooring permit orcommercial permit, or both, in accordance with the rules adopted by thechairperson pursuant to chapter 91, may transfer ownership of the vessel frompersonal ownership to corporate or other business ownership without terminatingthe right to moor or operate the vessel under the permit or permits.  Theexisting permit or permits shall be reissued in the name of the transfereecorporation or other business entity.

For the purposes of this section,"person" means any individual, firm, partnership, corporation, trust,association, joint venture, organization, institution, or any other legalentity, and "owner" includes the legal owner of a vessel where thereis no security interest held by anyone on the vessel, a buyer under a purchasemoney security interest, a debtor under any security interest, a demisecharterer of a vessel, or a lessee or charterer of a vessel under a lease orcharter which provides the lessee or charterer with exclusive right topossession of the vessel to the exclusion of the lessor or the person from whomthe vessel is chartered.  No permittee shall be allowed to moor a leased vesselin a berth unless the terms of the lease are set at fair market value.  A"legal owner" includes a person who holds unencumbered title to avessel or is a secured party under a security interest in the vessel.  An ownerwho is issued a permit to moor a vessel in a state small boat harbor shallnotify the department in writing of a transfer of interest or possession in thevessel within seven days of transfer.

Any person owning an interest in a corporationor other business entity possessing a valid commercial permit issued by thedepartment, in accordance with rules adopted by the chairperson pursuant tochapter 91, may transfer any or all stock or other interest to another personwithout terminating the right of the corporation or business entity to retainor renew its commercial permit or any other permit issued to it by thedepartment; provided that:

(1)  The corporation or business entity has beenengaged in the same commercial vessel activity, as defined in section 200-9,for a minimum of one year; and

(2)  The seller shall pay the department a businesstransfer fee based on the passenger-carrying capacity of the vessels owned oroperated by the corporation or business entity as provided by rules adopted bythe chairperson pursuant to chapter 91.

Any person possessing a commercial permit shall berequired to meet minimum revenue standards, as a condition of retaining or renewingthe commercial permit.

(e)  The department may designate moorage spacewithin state small boat harbors to accommodate commercial fishing vessels andtransient vessels.

(f)  All revenues from the foregoing operationsshall be deposited in the boating special fund. [L 1991, c 272, pt of §2; am L2005, c 126, §1]

 

Case Notes

 

  A vessel and itsaccompanying mooring and live-aboard permits are constitutionally protected"property", of which an individual may not be deprived without noticeand an opportunity to be heard.  91 H. 1, 979 P.2d 586.