Представители дайвинг-индустрии Флориды обратились к конгрессмену с просьбой снизить страховые тарифы и отменить пошлины

Growing financial pressures on Florida’s recreational dive businesses have led a group of industry representatives to meet a member of Congress to express their anxieties. South Florida dive-store owners, dive-boat operators and government affairs professionals from the Diving Equipment & Marketing Association (DEMA) met US Representative Lois Frankel, a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, for discussions on 26 August. They expressed particular concerns about rising insurance premiums, especially for dive-boat operators. Also raised were the cumulative pressures of tariffs on imported dive equipment, rising fuel costs and overhead expenses hitting dive-shops and fuel-intensive charter operations. Vessel insurance spikes stem from legislative changes in the wake of commercial maritime disasters – most notably the 2019 Conception dive-boat fire in California, which claimed 34 lives. DEMA’s federal advocacy focuses on reforming the Small Passenger Vessel Liability Fairness Act (Dive Boat Act), which overhauled historical liability caps and substantially raised maritime liability premiums for small passenger vessels. Tariffs on diving equipment strain dive retail operations because the vast majority of life-support gear such as regulators, BCs and computers relies on international manufacturing supply chains. Impact analysis First-hand operational perspectives were provided by local representatives from Divocean Charters, Jupiter Dive Centre, Pura Vida Divers, Starfish Scuba, and Walker’s Dive Charters. To underscore the industry’s footprint, the group cited a NOAA economic-impact analysis (based on 2016–2017 data). This study had revealed that scuba diving and snorkelling on reefs in the five counties of south-eastern Florida supported 8,668 jobs and generated $902 million in annual economic output in those years.  In Palm Beach County alone, the district represented by Rep Frankel, dive tourism had generated $202 million in output and supported 2,015 jobs, making it the highest-impact county in the study. Rep Frankel indicated that she would explore options to address the operational and regulatory challenges raised with the relevant congressional committees and government contacts.  “Local dive-businesses are facing increasing pressure from multiple directions, and it’s important that policy-makers hear directly from the people experiencing these challenges every day,” said DEMA president and CEO Julie A Fabsik-Swarts, who attended the meeting.  “DEMA is committed to making sure the needs of our members and the recreational diving industry are understood and represented at every level of government.” The organisation has stated that it will be following up at federal, state and local levels to advocate for targeted regulatory relief.