• New Office Bolsters Its $9.5 Billion Outdoor Recreation Economy BOSTON — December 13 — Massachusetts became the 18th state to establish an Office of Outdoor Recreation, drawing praise from Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) and bolstering the ability of the nation’s $862 billion outdoor recreation economy to grow even more. The Marine Retailers Association of […]
Tag: Legislative Updates
Your Voice Moves the Needle – Help Stop Imposter Schemes!
Fraud and impersonation scams are a growing problem with increasing frequency and greater levels of sophistication. Unfortunately, due to the pervasive nature of these scams some of our very own MRAA members and staff have fallen victims to these scams. These impersonation scams manifest themselves a wide-range range of ways, from someone texting you impersonating […]
Virginia Marine Resources Commission Rejects Governor’s Proposal to Limit Menhaden Fishing in Chesapeake Bay
• VMRC Declines to Exercise Authority Setting Any Limits on Harvest of Critical Forage Fish Species FORT MONROE, VIRGINIA — The Virginia Marine Resources Commission disappointed recreational fishing and resource conservation advocates throughout the Chesapeake Bay region yesterday by siding with Canadian-owned industrial menhaden harvester Omega Protein over the concerns of tens of thousands of […]
FTC Safeguards Rule Deadline Extended Six Months
• Dealers & Financial Institutions Must Comply by June 9, 2023 November 15, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the deadline to comply with updates to the Safeguards Rule is now pushed back by six months, to June 9, 2023. Originally, businesses had to comply with the updated Safeguards Rule by December 9 of […]
Proposed Vessel Speed Rule Will Hamper Recreation, Do Little for Right Whale
• Recreational boating and fishing community submit comment, ask NOAA to pause rule WASHINGTON, D.C., October 7, 2022 — Monday, the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas and other leading organizations representing recreational fishing and boating in the United States urged the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to pause its proposed North Atlantic Right Whale […]
Proposed Right Whale Rule Would Have Major Impact on East Coast Boating and Fishing
August 1, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) released a proposed rule to put in place additional vessel speed regulations to further protect North Atlantic right whales. The proposed rule would change the spatial and temporal boundaries of the speed reduction zones and include most vessels greater than or equal to 35 feet and less […]
MRAA Supports Bipartisan Youth Fishing Legislation
WASHINGTON D.C., September 2022 — Congress introduced the Youth Coastal Fishing Program Act of 2022 last week that would create opportunities for kids in underserved communities to get on the water. The bill was introduced in both the House and Senate September 22, and is supported broadly by the outdoor recreation community and members on […]
Cassidy, Daines Introduce Bill to Protect Use of Traditional Ammo, Tackle
[Supplied Release] WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Steve Daines (R-MT), and 21 colleagues today introduced the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act, which stops federal agencies from banning the use of traditional ammo or tackle on public lands without approval from scientific institutions and state wildlife agencies. Last week, the U.S. Fish […]
MRAA, RVDA Push Back Against Proposed FTC ‘Auto Rule’
WASHINGTON, D.C., September 14, 2022 — The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas collaborated with the RV Dealers Association, the National Powersports Dealer Association, a number of state-based marine trades associations, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy and more, to voice its opposition to the Federal Trade Commission’s recently proposed Auto Rule. As […]
Tokowicz, MRAA Advocacy Efforts Highlighted in ‘Boating Industry’ Magazine
As part of Boating Industry magazine’s report on sustainability within the marine industry, Associate Editor Jamie Stafford spoke with MRAA Government Relations Manager Chad Tokowicz. Under the header “Retailers” on page 24 of the August / September issue of the magazine, Chad shared the MRAA’s advocacy efforts and its approach to sustainability, conservation and legislative […]