2015 Annual Meeting News
Congratulations to our reelected Board members Capt. Percy Blackburn (VA), Capt. Roger Parcelles (FL), and Capt. Greg Sutter (AK) and newly elected Board members Capt. George Eller (FL) and Capt. Mike Schoonveld (IN ). We look forward to working together and to continue moving NACO forward.
NACO extends a special thank you to the two Board members who decided not to seek reelection, Capt. Scott Robson (FL) and Capt. Bryan Bondioli (AK) for their many years of service to NACO. Their work is greatly appreciated.
Board members elected as officers, are as follows:
Capt. Robert F. Zales II, President
Capt. Tom Becker , 1st Vice President,
Capt. Ed O’Brien, 2nd Vice President
Capt. Ron Maglio, Treasurer
Capt. Charlie Phillips, Secretary
We appreciate the hard work and dedication from the previous officers Capt. Percy Blackburn (President), Capt. Bob Rush (1st Vice President), Capt. Roger Parcelles (2nd Vice President), Capt. Randall Schmidt (Treasurer), and Capt. Dave Pecci (Secretary). They all did an excellent job and the current Officers will strive to continue that effort.
Thanks to Susan Mason and her staff for their hard work on all the day to day issues that come before NACO. Her efforts and willingness to serve the Board has helped to enhance our Association.
As NACO is a membership driven Association our members concerns are very important to us. We encourage membership and participation with your local Associations and are open to suggestions on how we may better serve you. NACO is here to help you and to work to ease regulatory burdens that adversely affect your business.
We at NACO look forward to the coming year and working with the Board and the Membership to keep NACO as the premier voice for the For-Hire Charter Boat Industry.
NPDES - Vessel Discharge - 3 Year Exemption Enacted
Good News: Vessel Discharge 3 year Exemption to be enacted!!
"The Senate was able to reach a compromise deal and, as part of the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act, just enacted a three year exemption for small vessels.
Broader reform on vessel discharge, including a permanent exemption for small vessels, remains a top priority for Senator Rubio in the next Congress and we look forward to continuing our engagement with you and your colleagues as, again, we work to get a more permanent solution across the finish line."
Once again our persistent hard work by NACO to gain a permanent exemption from the impact of the EPA NPDES requirements is paying off. Working with many other vessel associations and industry stakeholders NACO has been the leading voice to obtain a permanent exemption since the issue began in 2006. While we are extremely happy for the 3 year temporary exemption our work is not done. We will be working with our Congressional leaders in the next Congress to obtain a permanent exemption and are very optimistic we will be successful. NACO's efforts will save countless dollars and hours of regulatory burdens for our members.
We thank each of you that took time to individually contact your Senators in this effort.
While we were successful in gaining a 3 year extension for relief from the permit we will be steady working for permanent relief.