Lincoln Co. signals intent to leave Lake Norman Marine Commission

LINCOLN COUNTY, N.C. — As boating season on Lake Norman rapidly approaches, a decision from the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners could mean the end of the commission tasked with promoting safety and recreation on the lake.

On April 21, following a closed session without any public input, Lincoln County Commissioners voted to send a letter of intent to the LNMC, several state lawmakers, and other counties on the lake announcing their intent to withdraw from the commission.

A final vote will take place on May 6 and if the county does withdraw from the LNMC, the impact will affect everyone connected to Lake Norman, regardless of which county they live in.

Although Lincoln County is just one of four counties that are members of the LNMC, if commissioners vote to leave, the 65-year-old commission would dissolve in its entirety, immediately.

“What happens if we go away? Boating Safety decreases, public recreation decreases. That’s why we exist. So you’re going to have less safe operations on the lake, and you’re not going to have an advocate for safety,” Lake Norman Marine Commissioner Jon Johnson said.

In 1969, the NC General Assembly allowed Catawba, Iredell, Mecklenburg, and Lincoln counties to enter into a joint agreement that removed jurisdictional boundaries on Lake Norman.

Essentially, any law enforcement agency that is a member of the commission can enforce laws anywhere on the lake -- but without the LNMC, that jurisdictional agreement ceases to exist.

“There are no county lines on the lake. There’s no place in the middle of the lake where I’m now going from Catawba County to Lincoln County, that doesn’t exist,” Johnson said.

The LNMC’s function is to promote safety and recreation on the lake. This means everything from jurisdictional agreements between law enforcement agencies to maintaining navigational aids across the lake would be up to each individual county.

Navigational aids, buoys, and shoal markers are all maintained by the LNMC. Executive director David Scott said without those in place, the consequences are dire.

“If they’re [navigational aids] not maintained and updated, deaths will happen,” he said.

The LNMC does more than just maintain these channel markers. One of the most significant changes the LNMC has made over the past several years are regulations and restrictions on charter boats and rental boats. These rules require boat owners and captains to conduct things like safety checks and get permitted by the commission, and charters are required to hire licensed captains.

Although there has been pushback to the requirements, commissioners have been adamant their intent is not to overregulate -- but to keep people safe.

Last summer, when the new regulations were in full effect, boat-related deaths on the lake dropped to one. That’s significantly lower than in years past, and Johnson said that one death would not have happened if the new charter restrictions were being followed and enforced.

“That was an illegal charter that came out of Beatty’s Ford in Lincoln County, and it was completely preventable,” Johnson said. “The boat had never been inspected. There was no insurance. The person operating the boat was not a licensed captain.”

Scott said he believes the sudden change in support from Lincoln County is spurred by personal politics, and a small group of Lake Norman residents.

“Last fall, another group of citizens, a core group of half a dozen or so people, decided to take it among themselves that they could do a better job ... and have been operating, frankly, behind the scenes, [in a ]very secretive manner, [they] never contacted us or invited us to any meetings at all, and got pretty far down the line,” Scott said.

A request for an interview from the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners was declined, however, the county attorney provided a statement on behalf of the board. The Board of Commissioners cites feedback and concerns from the community as to the efficacy of the LNMC as their reason for the potential withdrawal.

The Lincoln County Commissioners sent the following statement:

“A Letter of Intent was issued to the Lake Norman Marine Commission stating that the Board of Commissioners intends to take a vote at its next regularly scheduled meeting on May 5, 2025 to determine whether it will withdraw from the Lake Norman Marine Commission. A copy of this letter was sent to Catawba County, Mecklenburg County, Iredell County, Duke Energy and State Legislators. This Commission has been in existence since 1969 following its creation by the General Assembly. For many years, at least one County Commissioner has regularly attended meetings of the Marine Commission and based on the feedback and concerns from community stakeholders and legislators, questions have arisen as to whether or not the Marine Commission is effectively operating for the betterment of Lake Norman and the four counties surrounding it. No decision has been made at this time as to whether or not Lincoln County will withdraw from the Commission effective June 30th, and therefore the Board feels that it is not proper to provide any further statements on this matter.”