New Boating Laws
House Bill 1, passed by the 1998 General Assembly, made several important changes to Kentucky’s boating laws as follows:
- A person under twelve (12) years of age shall not operate a personal watercraft or motorboat over ten (10) horsepower on the public waters of the Commonwealth.
- Effective January 1, 1999, a person twelve (12) years of age through seventeen (17) years of age shall not operate a personal watercraft or motorboat over ten (10) horsepower on the public waters of the Commonwealth unless the person is in possession of a safe boating certificate or is accompanied, on board, by a person eighteen (18) years of age or older or in possession of a safe boating certificate.
- While operating a motorboat or a personal watercraft over ten (10) horsepower on the public waters of the Commonwealth, nonresidents twelve (12) years of age through seventeen (17) years of age shall have in their possession a Kentucky safe boating certificate or a recognized and equivalent boat operator licensing or safe boating certificate from another state or country.
- A performer engaged in a professional exhibition; or
- A person participating in a regatta, a race, a marine parade, a tournament, or an exhibit that is held in compliance with administrative regulations adopted by the department.
PENALTIES
Any person who violates Section 3 of this Act [Boating While Intoxicated] shall not be subject to the penalties of KRS Chapter 189A, but shall be guilty of a separate offense and subject to a fine of one hundred dollars ($100) to two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the first offense, a fine of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) to five hundred dollars ($500) for the second offense, and a fine of five hundred dollars ($500) to one thousand dollars ($1,000), or imprisonment in the county jail for not less than thirty (30) days, or both, for the third or subsequent offense. Refusal to submit to a breath alcohol analysis or similar test in violation of subsection (3) of Section 3 of this Act shall be deemed an offense.
- The personal watercraft is equipped with a lanyard-type engine cutoff switch; and
- The lanyard is attached to the person, clothing, or personal flotation device of the operator.
- Weave through congested watercraft traffic in a way that endangers human life, human physical safety, or property;
- Follow a watercraft that is towing an individual on water skis, a surfboard, or a water sport device in a way that endangers human life, human physical safety, or property;
- Jump the wake of another watercraft in a way that endangers human life, human physical safety, or property;
- Cut between a boat and the individual or individuals being towed by the boat;
- Cross paths with another watercraft when visibility around the other watercraft is so obstructed as to endanger human life, human physical safety, or property; or
- Steer a personal watercraft or motorboat toward an object or individual in the water and turn sharply at close range in a way that endangers human life, human physical safety, or property.
"Personal watercraft"means a vessel which uses an internal combustion engine to power a jet pump for its primary source of propulsion and is designed to be operated by a person sitting, standing, or kneeling on the vessel rather than to be operated by a person sitting or standing inside the vessel.
"Safe boating certificate"means a document attesting the successful completion of instruction, approved by the department or given by the United States Coast Guard or Coast Guard Auxiliary or the U.S. Power Squadron, to prepare an individual to safely operate a motorboat or personal watercraft on the waters of the Commonwealth.