Whitle attempting to leave his dock, Operator of Vsl #1 failed to engage forward thrust after backing out of his slip.  This resulted in Vsl #1 colliding with Vsl #2 behind Vsl #1.  USCG: USCG questioned the assigned cause of the accident report given that the narrative did not mention machinery failure but the cause field of the report did.  Michigan representative explained that the  Muskegon County Sheriff's Department wrote on the report that the cause was faulty equipment, and not the Operator's inattention.  The operator was not under the influence of anything, had a lot of experience, and did not get a citation.
It was not explained what the "faulty equipment" was.
City of Muskegon              