The Better Boating Fund will ensure every cent of the approximately $30 million of boat licensing and registration fees collected each year goes towards improving boating for all Victorians.

Legislation introduced into Parliament will create the Fund, which will be dedicated to priorities including recreational boating facilities and boating safety and education across the state.

It will mean boaters who enjoy getting on the water from places like Werribee South Boat Ramp will know that their registration and licencing fees are going back into upgrading local facilities and improving safety.

It will be a far more transparent system, allowing boaters to see exactly how much is collected in fees each year and where the money goes.

The Government will work directly with boat owners and stakeholders, who will be invited to help co-design a new strategy for investment.

There will be extensive opportunities for public engagement and feedback during the fund’s development on where money would be best spent.

The Government has already abolished all boat ramp parking and launching fees, saving families up to $315 a year on annual parking permits.

A major $40 million investment is also going towards upgrading six priority boat ramps across the state. Work is underway at the Hastings boat ramp and Cowes Jetty, and planning for the upgrades of Mordialloc, Queenscliff, Point Richards and Rhyll boating facilities is progressing.

Recreational boating supports more than 20,000 jobs and is worth almost $8 billion a year to the Victorian economy, with the number of boating registrations increasing by 2.5 per cent on average each year over the past eight years.

Quotes attributable to Member for Werribee Tim Pallas

“We’re reinvesting the registration and licencing fees of boat owners back into local boat infrastructure, which will mean places like Wyndham Harbour and Werribee South aren’t left behind.”

“This is landmark legislation which will transform the way the boating industry is managed in Victoria, and will create more transparency for boat owners, who will see exactly how much money has gone into which projects.”