BREVARD COUNTY, Fla.,None — Treasure hunting and salvage is big business along Central Florida's coast, but some treasure hunters say the state is now trying to overregulate their business.
The reason behind these proposed restrictions? Some state lawmakers want more control over state-owned land and archeological sites.
Mark Holshoe said treasure hunting is his passion.
"It's always a thrill just to find something. You don't know what you'll run across," Holshoe said.
A person armed with a metal detector is a common sight up and down Central Florida's beaches. But some worry they'll be regulated right off the sand, should they ever find a rare artifact.
"Right now, it's legal for them to own it, have it, hold it. This could definitely change," coin dealer John Hancock said.
Hancock is against a proposed state law that gives authorities more control over metal detecting and large-scale salvage operations off the coast, though Hancock is more concerned about the little guy.
"The last thing they need is some draconian fine for something they just found on the beach," Hancock said.
The legislation adds more rules to already existing laws that restrict the use of metal detectors on state-owned land and archeological sites.
But Mitch King of the Treasure Coast Archeological Society said he worries one more state law will lead to "another."
"It's not an actual attack on our hobby. It's not an actual attack on metal detecting," King said. "If I have 10 acres of private land, that's my land -- I want to be able to metal detect it. I don't want the state to come in and tell me I can't."
Holshoe is staying out of the politics. He just wants to pursue his passion.
"It could be coins, it could be jewelry, or Spanish stuff. There's always a change," Holshoe said.