WASHINGTON - Senator Charles Schumer called on the President of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to promptly review a recent incident in which Niagara County residents Randy Hook and Gerald Daniel were boating in Port Dahlousie when two of their vessels and one of their Jet Skis were seized by the Agency and they were forced to pay $3000 in fines after attempting to lawfully report their presence. Schumer stated that a two-pronged resolution is needed in this situation: Canada Border Services Agency must provide clear and readily available guidance in terms of the expectations and obligations of American boaters, and should investigate the Hook and Daniel families’ treatment and costly boat seizure, given their unsuspicious and lawful aims in the incident.

“The Canadian Border Services Agency should immediately clarify their maritime border policies for New York boaters so that incidents like the recent boat seizure in Port Dahlousie don’t happen again,” said Schumer. “I am urging the CBSA to promptly review the recent incidents during which the Hook and Daniel families called authorities to lawfully report their vessels during boating trip, but were instead slapped with $3000 in fines. I believe that this case must prompt a review of CBSA’s policies and procedures both as to his individual case and for future similarly-situated cases. CBSA must more clearly communicate the duties and expectations of Americans boating near the border, and to provide clear warnings in incidents with first-time offenders in those situations.”

In a letter to Luc Portelance, President of the Canada Border Services Agency, Schumer highlighted a recent incident during which Niagara County residents attempted to report their presence while on vacation, but were still forced to pay significant fines. According to reports, Canadian border patrol officers determined that both the Hook and Daniel families had failed to report their presence. However, both families had attempted multiple times and through various means to report their presence within minutes of entering Canadian waters. Ultimately, both of the families’ boats and a Jet Ski were seized and the families were required to pay a $1,000 fine per vessel to get them back. In addition, the families had their NEXUS passes confiscated. The western New York residents have visited Port Dahlousie for over ten years and made a good faith effort to comply with Canadian law.

Schumer noted that without clear guidance, American boaters might be in violation of Canadian law without any knowledge or any illegal intent. Moving forward, Schumer noted that the expectations of those boating near the Canadian border must be made clearer, including the need to report presence at ports of entry, whether boats are anchored or otherwise on shore. Schumer urged for a two-pronged resolution to this issue: he asks that CBSA work to provide warnings and clear guidance to first-time offenders who are caught boating on the U.S.-Canada border with no suspicious or unlawful aims, and asks that the CBSA investigate its treatment of the Hook and Daniel families to determine whether the equities of his case should prompt CBSA to refund the fine he was required to pay.