CORTEZ – A U.S. Coast Guard Station Cortez law enforcement crew cited what they said was an illegal uninspected small passenger vessel-for-hire operating on Anna Maria Sound on Jan. 3.
According to a U.S. Coast Guard press release, the 22-foot boat was operating a ferry service to a short-term lodging sailboat with two people and three dogs as passengers. During the investigation, it was found that the unnamed operator was previously issued a Captain of the Port order in June 2023 for operating without a Coast Guard-issued captain’s license, a regulatory requirement.
“Short-term lodging vessels on the water are not illegal,” Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg Chief of Investigations Brian Knapp said. “If owners of short-term rentals provide transportation by way of a ferry service to and from the rental on the water, that is considered a passenger-for-hire operation, and the owner must be a credentialed mariner and follow the regulations for operating this type of service.”
“The crew was out on patrol and recognized the boat as one that had been stopped before,” Coast Guard spokesperson Nicole Groll said. “They boarded the boat and found that the operator was in violation. Because they were doing something they were told not to do, the boat was escorted back to shore.”
Groll declined to provide an incident report or identify the person who was cited.
“The case has been sent to the U.S. Attorney’s office and they will decide whether to pursue criminal charges,” Groll said. “Because they violated a Captain of the Port order, that is a federal offense.”
The boat was a 2008 22-foot Sea Hunt bow rider. The boat name was not visible in the Coast Guard release photo.
The operator of the boat was cited with the following violations:
• Violation of 46 CFR 15.605 for failing to have an uninspected passenger vessel under the command and control of a credentialed mariner;
• Violation of 46 CFR 16.201 for failure of the operator to be enrolled in a drug testing consortium;
• Violation of 33 CFR 160.105 for failure to comply with a Captain of the Port order.
“Anyone paying for a trip on a vessel should ask to see the merchant mariner credential of the boat operator to verify they are properly licensed by the Coast Guard to operate that vessel as the captain,” Knapp said. “If the captain can’t produce their license, don’t get on the boat.”
Groll said that a Coast Guard civil hearing will be scheduled to determine any potential fines.
Owners and operators of illegal charter vessels can face maximum civil penalties of over $60,000 for illegal passenger-for-hire operations. Charters that violate a Captain of the Port order can face a maximum penalty of $111,031. Some potential fines for illegally operating a charter vessel are:
• Up to $22,324 for failure to operate a passenger vessel without a merchant mariner credential;
• Up to $9,086 for failure of operators to be enrolled in a drug testing program;
• Up to $5,661 for failure to provide a Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection for vessels carrying more than six passengers;
• Up to $19,324 for failure to produce a valid Certificate of Documentation for vessels over 5 net tons.
Anyone suspecting a vessel of violating the law is asked to report the alleged violation to U.S. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg at 727-502-8720.
