Committee advances DMR technical corrections bill unanimously

The Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources advanced LD 20 24, a Department of Marine Resources technical corrections bill, by unanimous vote in work session. Representative Lisonbee Hepler sponsored the measure; Deirdre Gilbert, DMR’s director of state marine policy, testified on the department’s behalf.

Gilbert summarized the bill’s technical fixes: the for‑hire charter boat license language is amended to require a valid United States Merchant Mariner Credential issued by the U.S. Coast Guard with an endorsement authorizing passengers for hire (the change replaces a problematic reference to a specific professional credential); the bill eliminates a duplicative civil penalty for exceeding the lobster trap limit while preserving the existing criminal penalty and its mandatory suspension; and it removes an unintended prohibition on issuing an over‑dealer or supplemental dealer license to a person using the same business address as a person who had previously violated elver dealer laws.

During the committee work session a motion that LD 20 24 “ought to pass as amended” was made by Senator Moore and seconded; the committee recorded a unanimous vote of members present. Committee members said the bill corrects drafting problems and does not change trap counts or other substantive management rules.

Next steps: LD 20 24 will proceed to the Legislature’s floor for further consideration.