The U.S. Congress and the Canadian Parliament will soon see legislation introduced to ease the border reporting requirements for boaters in shared U.S.-Canadian waters.

Congressman Bill Owens (NY-23) and Canadian Member of Parliament Gordon Brown (Leeds-Grenville) will announce today their plan for international companion legislation to be proposed for both federal governments to waive the reporting requirement for boaters who do not anchor or dock in shared waters between Canada and the United States.

The issue arose this spring when an American boater fishing in Canadian waters along New York’s northern border with Ontario was boarded by Canadian authorities who accused the boater of violating Canadian border regulations by not reporting his presence in Canadian waters.

He was threatened with seizure of his boat unless he paid a $1,000 fine on the spot, which he did.

The concern expressed at the time by U.S. boaters was that the incident appeared to be unfriendly at best, and that if the reporting requirements were violated, the actual laws had not been adequately communicated to them.