Several new laws take effect in Connecticut today.  Boaters will pay a new annual fee that will go toward eradicating aquatic invasive species. The fee is $5 for in-state vessels and $20 for out-of-state registered vessels.  The fee will be required to be paid whenever a boat’s registration is renewed.

The state expects to raise about $500,000 a year from the new fee. 

Danbury state Representative Ken Gucker says some of the funding could be used for education to alert boaters about the law. 

New Fairfield Inland Wetlands Commissioner Carolyn Rowan testified on the bill during a public hearing that the only scientific way of monitoring for zebra mussels is through West Conn students.  Rowan says invasive weeds can get tangled in people's boats, damaging their vessels.  She added that property values are contingent on the health of the lake.