New Lake Norman Marine Commission for improved water safety, but will it work?
Major changes are coming to the Lake Norman Marine Commission that expand its board and strengthen its charter, which officials hope will improve water safety for boaters.
State lawmakers on Monday, June 30, dissolved the previous 56-year-old entity and introduced a bill that creates a new commission format with nine members, including two from each surrounding counties — Catawba, Iredell, Lincoln and Mecklenburg.
The ninth member, an at-large-commissioner, must have proficient knowledge of boater safety protocols, according to the bill introduced by Sens. Vickie Sawyer (R-Iredell) and Ted Alexander (R-Cleveland, Gaston, Lincoln).
Gov. Josh Stein signed the bill July 7. Officials expect the new commission to begin in August, which places a pause on boat rental registrations during the interim.
The change comes after Lincoln County received numerous complaints about the Marine Commission’s approaches and inactivity, said Bud Cesena, a Lincoln County Commissioner.
“We decided that it was best for all concerned to reestablish a Marine Commission and the best way to get a new commission was to dissolve the old commission,” Cesena told The Charlotte Observer.
Feedback from Lake Norman visitors to county commissioners included complaints on navigational aids not being fixed in a timely manner and other slow movements concerning lake issues, such as an outbreak of lyngbya, which is a smelly blue-green algae that can clog boat motors and degrade water quality, according to Charlotte Water.
After hearing concerns, Cesena began attending commission meetings about three years ago, he said, and found the group slow to take necessary actions.
Originally created in 1969, its role was to issue and enforce charter and rental boat regulations related to licenses, insurance and permits. The commission also appropriates buoys, holds education classes, monitors environmental and safety concerns and keeps a website of events happening on Lake Norman.
But the commission’s charter had not been updated since, Cesena said, adding its bylaws, established in 1980, also had not been updated.
Not everyone is happy about the change. John Johnson, the former commissioner chairman, believes that the time it takes to dissolve and reestablish a new commission charter opens the door to accidents or illegal boat rentals and charters, “which caused most of Lake Norman’s recent boating fatalities,” he shared in a statement with the Observer Monday.
However, two businesses on Lake Norman that offer boat rentals welcome the revisions.
Each has worked with the Marine Commission previously because of its role as a governing body related to boat safety and awareness. They are both concerned with unlicensed individuals listing boats for rent without insurance and safety knowledge, which, the Commission sets guidelines for.
“The lake commission as it was needed to evolve,” said Nathan Henson, owner of Sunny Day Boat Rental, in Mecklenburg County. “There needs to be real regulation put in place, a challenge the commission had was setting guidelines and recommendations, but unless that was codified into a law there’s nothing law enforcement could do.”
Martin Cagle, who owns Ride Wake & Surf Co., in Iredell County, echoed this sentiment. He hopes the new commission implements similar guidelines to the former group just with laws for better enforcement.
Cagle did not notice delays related to navigational aids, he said, and at the commission meetings he attended, he felt the body quickly responded to active lake issues. He did notice issues with timeliness after he spoke at a couple meetings requesting the commission to publish who the legal charters on the lake are.
This request took a year to complete, he said.
“Things could certainly move faster,” Cagle said, but added that he appreciates the Marine Commissions effort to make the lake safer.
Changes in membership and enforcement
In addition to expanding, the process to become a marine commissioner also will change. In the past, anyone interested in serving on the commission could petition their county commissioners and counties could select members.
Now, Catawba, Iredell, Lincoln and Mecklenburg counties will appoint two members each who will need demonstrated proficiency in community engagement and collaboration across different groups, according to the proposed by-laws.
The ninth member will be selected by the eight appointed marine commissioners and must meet at least one of a few qualifications:
▪ Have served in the United States Coast Guard, or
▪ Has knowledge of water quality and aquatic vegetation management, or
▪ Experience in law enforcement, public recreation management and wildlife resources management.
No more than 35% of the serving commissioners may reside in the same county. No commissioner can own or have financial interest in any business or property that is dependent on income generated from Lake Norman, according to the bill.
There are plans to add a subcommittee to the Marine Commission focused on community engagement, boater and water safety education and public outreach programs, according to a June 26 press release from Lincoln County.
Another main change will be enforcement, Cesena said.
“In the new codification, it’s going to provide a stronger basis in the general statutes for officers to actually enforce the rules and regulations of the Marine Commission,” Cesena added.
There are several law enforcement agencies on Lake Norman: Lake patrols from Iredell, Lincoln and Catawba County Sheriff’s offices, Cornelius Police Department Lake Patrol and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.
Sgt. Jarid Church, with the Iredell County lake patrol unit, said his unit attended monthly marine commission meetings and maintained a good relationship. He is hopeful that the stature of the new commission will provide more “backbone” to the rules and regulations the Marine Commission tried to accomplish.
Former member concerns
Though the rules, regulations and decisions made by the former commission will remain, “these rules are not enforceable until the new Marine Commission is reconstituted, so they will disappear for most of this summer,” former commissioner Johnson said during the meeting Monday.
Cesena said he doesn’t expect that to be an issue.
“There will be folks that will probably do some charters that are not supposed to. There (will) probably be some folks that do some rental books that are not supposed to,” he said. Law enforcement will continue as normal on the lake, Cesena added.
Church is not worried about illegal activities or safety while commission is not in effect, he said. Chad Arnold, major of administration for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission law enforcement, agrees.
Each county will play a role
Mecklenburg County will now handle the equipment and record storage. Iredell County is taking care of the navigational aids. Lincoln and Catawba counties have accepted responsibility for anything else that needs to be done until the new Marine Commission begins, Cesena said.
“There is nothing in the new bill that could not have been worked out with the existing Marine Commission,” Johnson said, adding its dissolution, “has simply been a political power play managed by a few people based on personal agendas and vendettas, resulting in an exceptional waste of time, effort, and money.”
Cesena said the changes made could not have been worked out with the former group with out changing the by-laws he said.
It does not cost anything to create a new commission, according to Cesena
This story was originally published July 4, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "New Lake Norman Marine Commission for improved water safety, but will it work?."
