BBMWD board greenlights pilot program for boaters who stay out after hours

The Big Bear Municipal Water District will test a modified "Blue Card" process letting recreational boaters leave their trailers overnight in district lots when they can't make it back before launch ramp gates close.

At a special meeting on the morning of September 11, 2026, the BBMWD Board of Directors unanimously directed staff to launch a pilot Blue Card program through an internal administrative procedure — meaning no ordinance change or public vote is required to get it running^[1]. For boaters who've ever watched the clock while anchored on the far end of the lake, the change could mean the difference between a frantic dash to the ramp and a relaxed evening on the water.

What is the Blue Card program?

The Blue Card program is the district's existing framework for managing after-hours access to its lake facilities — specifically for boaters who remain on Big Bear Lake past the time the launch ramps close^[1]. The program governs how those boaters can legally leave their trailers in a district lot overnight and, critically, how they must return to get their vessel inspected and re-banded before putting it back in the water.

Aquatic invasive species (AIS) prevention is central to the program. California law requires boats to be inspected and banded — a physical seal that shows a vessel has been checked for hitchhiking mussels, weeds, and other organisms — before launch. When a boat stays out overnight, that banding process has to happen on the back end, which is what the Blue Card procedure is designed to manage^[1].

What the board decided

General Manager Jared Cheek led the workshop discussion, walking the board through the history of the Blue Card program and weighing a range of considerations: AIS prevention, how overnight parking affects lot operations, liability exposure, enforcement challenges, and convenience for recreational users^[1].

The board then worked through the nuts and bolts of how a pilot would function. Key parameters discussed included how boaters would notify the district, how much time they'd have to return for inspection and banding, what happens to trailers left without authorization (towing procedures), any caps on program use, and how much discretion staff would have in day-to-day administration^[1].

The vote directed staff to implement the pilot and keep a close eye on it — monitoring program performance, assessing operational and risk impacts, and adjusting the rules as needed^[1]. President Bradford expressed appreciation for staff's efforts "to accommodate recreational users and support the District's public service mission while maintaining operational requirements"^[1].

What's not yet clear

The minutes record no public comment on the proposal, and the voices of several groups who have a stake in how this plays out — boaters and lake-user organizations, neighbors near district parking lots, and state or county AIS enforcement agencies — were not reflected in the board's discussion as documented. It's also not yet known what specific notification steps or return deadlines will be built into the pilot's administrative procedure; those details will be worked out by staff.

The board's next regular meeting is scheduled for September 17, 2026, at 1:00 PM at the district office at 40524 Lakeview Drive, Big Bear Lake — where further details on the pilot's rollout may be available^[1].