CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- There are questions about Governor Pritzker's decision that no more than two people can be in a boat together.
Revised stay-at-home guidelines began Friday, May 1, as Governor Pritzker extended the state's stay-at-home order. Changes included the reopening of some businesses and public spaces, but put a limit on the amount of people gathering.
Among the revised stay-at-home order is a rule limiting the number of people on a boat to two, according to a spokeswoman for the Governor’s Office.
But, the latest executive order signed by Pritzker does not include the two-person rule, and instead said boaters need to follow the guidelines set by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, said Sgt. Christopher Covelli, a spokesman for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office has not received any enforcement guidance from the department, and said it will ot enforce the two-person limit, according to the Lake County News Sun.
The Sheriff’s Office will be enforcing the usual maritime laws, in addition to temporary guidelines issued by the Fox Waterway Agency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those rules include a ban on tying boats to each other and a requirement that anchored boats be at least 10 feet apart.
“We remind the community to remember congregating in groups of more than 10, or with non-family members could be a violation of the Governor’s Executive Order,” Covelli told the Lake County News Sun.
The Governor’s regulation has earned some push back.
“Even if they can't get in the water, they like cruising around, and we’re looking forward to those warmer days,” Joseph Wyrostek told CBS 2.
Wyrostek has a wife and six kids on the Chain O'Lakes.
"So, I don’t understand the science behind it,” he said. “I can’t see it as a scientific decision. If I’m already quarantined with them, in a house together, then why couldn't we be outdoors on a boat?”
On Sunday, Gov. JB Pritzker said the rules are specifically in place to allow fishing, but that could be two people who are not quarantined together.
“Also the idea that if you can’t maintain the six feet distance, you’re putting yourself and your family and friends in danger,” Pritzker said. “Look, it’s the data that tells us that if you’re in a large group of people in a small space, if you can’t maintain a six-foot distance between each person in a party, then you shouldn’t be together in that space. Many boats, most boats that people can afford, don’t really make room for more than two people. We wanted to make sure that people who want to go fishing can do so.”
Boaters, like Joseph Wyrostek, see no logic that they can't go boating with family members, since they have been under the same roof for weeks. They want to see that science and data.
"It's not even realistic. So I would rather have a day in court than to restrict my family from enjoying what we’ve literally waited all winter for," he said.
The Governor's office said the rule remains in place, and local agencies will enforce the rule that lasts until the end of May.
The Fox Waterway Agency, which oversees the Fox River and Chain O'Lakes, is looking for some clarification.