Quick Survey on Florida Anchoring Rights

[Victory 28]

Hello, thanks for your interest in the subject. Your opinions expressed here could be referenced verbatim in an analytical research report and will definitely be included statistically.

Once again in the state of Florida anchoring rights have been changed in a negative, nonsensical actually cynical way to:

"(2) To promote the public’s use and enjoyment of the designated waterway, except as provided in subsections (3) and (4), a person may not anchor a vessel at any time during the period between one-half hour after sunset and one-half hour before sunrise in an anchorage limitation area."

The politician speak here affords county and city level law enforcement the rights to impound your vessel if:

(b) A law enforcement officer or agency may remove a vessel from an anchorage limitation area and impound the vessel for up to 48 hours, or cause such removal and impoundment, if the vessel operator, after being issued a citation for a violation of this section:
1. Anchors the vessel in violation of this section within 12 hours after being issued the citation; or
2. Refuses to leave the anchorage limitation area after being directed to do so by a law enforcement officer or agency.
(c) A law enforcement officer or agency acting under this subsection to remove or impound a vessel, or to cause such removal or impoundment, shall be held harmless for any damage to the vessel resulting from such removal or impoundment unless the damage results from gross negligence or willful misconduct.



Or alternatively if your vessel is severely damaged we cannot be held responsible unless in fact the serious damage that we caused was due to gross incompetence or we meant to do it. And hey, we didn't mean to do it! haw, haw, haw.

Is that clever or what?

I believe that this heavy handed, idiotic, speed trap, kickback towing company sponsored legislation is a preemptive attack on our rights to navigation in the state of Florida, including of course anchoring

The survey question is: More background: Exclusive of the specific areas defined in other parts of the law cited above, state approved mooring fields, declared floating domiciles, marked channels, security or environmental closed zones and places of business, you are currently authorized to anchor freely and without any restrictions throughout the meandering inland waterways of the state of Florida.

Do you agree that anchoring in the populous areas designated in the new law should be in any way restricted or regulated by county and city level law enforcement? yes or no.

And: Please feel free to expound on the specific reasons for you answer


Your help and opinions are greatly appreciated.

The rights to free navigation have existed prior to Justinian Rome, and are included in the public trust, the Magna Carta, The US Constitution and the Florida State Constitution. lets call any other interference exactly what it is: Piracy.

https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bil...llText/c1/HTML

[Ram]

No to these regulations

[vjm]

If you want the poll to have any validity at any level I think it would be wise to tone down the rhetoric and at least try to frame the question posed neutrally.

[denverd0n]

Have to agree with vjm. Much as I hate the new law that was passed recently, this is neither a "poll" nor a "survey." It is just a rant looking for agreement. A well-justified rant, certainly, but a rant, nonetheless.