Security saps state patrols

A major push in the post 9/11 era to safeguard our waterways has left many state marine patrols undermanned, overworked and underfunded.

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According to John Fetterman, chairman of the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators' (NASBLA) Homeland Security Committee, serious problems are developing in some states as they try to carry out their marine safety missions while at the same time being asked to do more to protect the waterfront. "Most states have lost personnel because of a lack of funds brought on, in part, by operational spending for homeland security," said Fetterman. Apparently, the Coast Guard has asked the states to do more without providing funds necessary to do the job.

"We are nearly 20% below our manning level of marine patrol officers in my state of Maine as are most other states," says Fetterman. South Carolina has been hit particularly hard by budget cuts and has a personnel shortage of 30%. "Our committee's primary mission is to increase the Coast Guard budget specifically to reimburse state boating agencies for homeland security so that they can add additional personnel," he said.

In addition to the shortage of personnel, NASBLA estimates that waterway patrol officers are spending well over 8,000 hours per month nationally on homeland security efforts, time that would usually be spent on boating safety and fisheries and wildlife enforcement. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries reports that their marine patrols spent over 5,800 hours in overtime just guarding nuclear power facilities last year.

California has experienced cutbacks in the number of boat patrols across the board even as the number of boaters has increased. "Somewhere between 20% to 30% of their time is taken up with homeland security tasks such as patrolling the water around airports, refineries, military installations and power plants," said Boating Law Administrator Ray Tsuneyoshi. "Marine units in California have been absorbing the cost of such patrols, but it is a delicate balance of dwindling resources, insufficient funds and national security," he said.

NASBLA's Homeland Security Committee recently established a goal to convince Congress to add $40 million to the Coast Guard budget specifically to pay for state marine patrol personnel increases, fuel, maintenance, purchase and replacement of equipment and maritime homeland security training for states that have a written agreement with the Coast Guard.

Fetterman has been working closely with Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) to make this happen next year. "We have a clear precedent for federal reimbursement of marine patrol work done on behalf of NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service," said committee member Jim Brown, of Florida's Office of Boating and Waterways.

But, state marine patrols apparently fall into a "Catch 22" when it comes to trying to squeeze money out of the Coast Guard's budget. "Federal law prohibits our operational funds from being used for anything but our own use. All of the other dollars are 'fenced' for specific programs," said Coast Guard Port Security Planning and Readiness Director Tony Regalbuto. Maritime units are not allowed to use boating safety money for homeland security missions. They must pretend to be checking on recreational boaters when in fact they are looking for terrorists, says another well-placed Coast Guard source.

The majority of the Department of Homeland Security's funding goes to state "first responders," such as local city fire, emergency response and rescue units, and not to the states. "Only 20% of the government's funds are allocated directly to the states and very little of that makes it down to its marine patrols," notes Fetterman.

As their budgets have dwindled, states are looking everywhere for funding. Maine was able to squeeze a little money from the Department of Justice to buy two small patrol craft last spring and Virginia even looked to port security grant funds to make up for some of its budget shortage. "We haven't been successful getting these funds in the past, but we hope to get two patrol boats for the Norfolk area in next year's request," said the state budgeter Tom Wilcox.

Meanwhile, Florida, one of the states that has a homeland security memorandum of understanding with the Coast Guard, hopes to get a chunk of the $40 million that NASBLA's lobbying for to cover their shortages. "Our patrol personnel must cover all of our long coastline, harbors and interior waters, including protecting the water around our many military bases," said Jim Brown.

Although many of the state water units must make do with using their boating safety funds for homeland security missions. "We are not shortchanging recreational boater safety," says Dan Hughes of Maryland's Department of Natural Resources.

NASBLA believes that the state marine patrol homeland security mission will only grow more demanding as increased emphasis is put on preventing a waterbome disaster. "We need more resources to provide the nation with a force multiplier, particularly on inland waters where the Coast Guard has limited or no presence," said Fetterman.

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