Substitute House Bill No. 6637
Public Act No. 19-190
AN ACT REQUIRING AN INVASIVE SPECIES STA MP FOR THE
OPERATION OF A MOTOR BOAT ON THE WATERS O F THE
STATE AND ENFORCEMEN T OF NOISE ORDINANCES ON
CANDLEWOOD LAKE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective January 1, 2020) (a) Any person who
registers a vessel or renews a vessel registration pursuant to section 15-
144 of the general statutes and who intends to operate or allow such
vessel to be operated on the waters of the state shall concomitantly, in
addition to the remittance of any fee required pursuant to section 15-
144 of the general statutes, pay an Aquatic Invasive Species fee of five
dollars. The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles shall cause all revenues
collected pursuant to this section to be deposited in the Connecticut
Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account established in section
14-21aa of the general statutes, as amended by this act.
(b) Any person who intends to operate or allow a vessel to be
operated on the inland waters of the state that is registered in another
state shall, prior to such operation, pay an Aquatic Invasive Species fee
of twenty dollars to the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental
Protection. Such fees shall be paid annually and such payment shall be
valid until the last day of December of such year. The Commissioner of Substitute House Bill No. 6637
Public Act No. 19-190 2 of 3
Energy and Environmental Protection shall cause all revenues
collected pursuant to this subsection to be deposited in the Connecticut
Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account established in section
14-21aa of the general statutes, as amended by this act. Any person
who operates a vessel on the inland waters of the state in violation of
the provisions of this subsection shall have committed an infraction
and shall be fined not more than eighty-five dollars.
Sec. 2. Section 14-21aa of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2020):
(a) There is established an account to be known as the "Connecticut
Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account". The Connecticut
Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account shall be a separate,
nonlapsing account of the General Fund. Any moneys required by law
to be deposited in the account shall be deposited in and credited to the
Connecticut Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account. The
account shall be available to the Commissioner of Energy and
Environmental Protection for (1) restoration and rehabilitation of lakes,
rivers and ponds in the state; (2) programs of the Department of
Energy and Environmental Protection for the eradication of aquatic
invasive species and cyanobacteria blooms; (3) education and public
outreach programs to enhance the public's understanding of the need
to protect and preserve the state's lakes, rivers and ponds; (4)
allocation of grants to state and municipal agencies and not-for-profit
organizations to conduct research and to provide public education and
public awareness to enhance understanding and management of the
natural resources of the state's lakes, rivers and ponds; (5) provision of
funds for all services that support the protection and conservation of
the state's lakes, rivers and ponds; and (6) reimbursement of the
Department of Motor Vehicles for the cost of producing, issuing,
renewing and replacing Save Our Lakes commemorative number
plates, including administrative expenses, pursuant to section 14-21z. Substitute House Bill No. 6637
Public Act No. 19-190 3 of 3
(b) The commissioner may receive private donations to the
Connecticut Lakes, Rivers and Ponds Preservation account and any
such receipts shall be deposited in the account.
(c) The commissioner may provide for the reproduction and
marketing of the Save Our Lakes commemorative number plate image
for use on clothing, recreational equipment, posters, mementoes, or
other products or programs deemed by the commissioner to be
suitable as a means of supporting the Connecticut Lakes, Rivers and
Ponds Preservation account. Any funds received by the commissioner
from such marketing shall be deposited in the Connecticut Lakes,
Rivers and Ponds Preservation account.
(d) Notwithstanding any provision of this section, not less than
eighty per cent of any funds deposited into the Connecticut Lakes,
Rivers and Ponds Preservation account pursuant to section 1 of this act
shall be utilized for the purposes described in subdivisions (2) to (4),
inclusive, of subsection (a) of this section.
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective from passage) Notwithstanding any provision
of the general statutes, any environmental conservation police officer
of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has the
authority to enforce the noise ordinance of any municipality that abuts
Candlewood Lake on the waters of such lake. In the event that
multiple towns that abut such lake have a noise ordinance, any such
officer is authorized to enforce the noise ordinance of the municipality
that establishes the most restrictive standard for noise upon the waters
of such lake.