BOATING LEGISLATION - 2000

Chapter 2000-386

The 2000 Florida Legislature passed a measure that impacts boaters and boating safety issues. Some of the impacts are significant, others were of a technical nature with little or no impact on the public. Below is a section-by-section summary of the bill's more significant impacts. To view the bill as passed, follow this link.
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Section 2. Effective 7/1/2000
Amends s. 327.02, F.S.

• Clarifies the definitions of commercial vessel, motorboat, lien, lienholder, navigation rules, operate, personal watercraft, and sailboat.
• Adds definitions for recreational vessel, marker, and livery vessel.

Section 6. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.33, F.S.

• Adds "buzzing" a dive flag (violating s. 327.331(6), F.S.) to the description of reckless operation.
• Removes dive flag provisions from the careless operation subsection.

Section 7. Effective 10/1/2000
Renumbers s. 861.065, F.S., as s. 327.331, F.S., and amends it:

• Increases the size of divers flags displayed on vessels from 12"x12" to 20"x24" and requires a stiffener to keep the flag unfurled.
• Dive flags on vessels must be displayed so that the flag's visibility is not obstructed.
• Vessel operators must make reasonable effort to maintain a distance of 100 feet from any divers-down flag while on a river, inlet, or navigation channel; divers must make a reasonable effort to stay within 100 feet of the divers-down flag on rivers, inlets, or navigation channels (NOT A CHANGE).
• Divers must make a reasonable effort to stay within 300 feet of the divers-down flag on all waters other than rivers, inlets, or navigation channels; vessel operators must make a reasonable effort to maintain a distance of 300 feet on these waters.
• Vessels may approach within 100 feet or 300 feet of a divers-down flag only at idle speed; approaching at higher speed is reckless operation.
• Dive flag violations continue to be 2^nd degree misdemeanors for one year.

Section 8. Effective 10/1/2001
Criminal penalties for divers-down flag violations (other than buzzing a dive flag) become noncriminal infractions.

Section 11. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.37, F.S., water skiing requirements to prohibit wearing inflatable PFDs.

Section 12. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends the PWC provisions in s. 327.39, F.S.:

• Prohibits wearing inflatable PFDs
• Requires PWCs to comply with laws governing reckless operation, careless operation and navigation rules.
• Makes it unlawful allow a rented PWC to be operated by a person who has not received instruction in the safe handling of a PWC
• The person who receives the instruction, must give the rented PWC's owner "a written statement attesting to the same."
• Gives the FWC rulemaking authority to set the instruction to be given PWC renters.

Section 13. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.395, F.S., to provide that FWC approved boater safety courses, equivalency examinations, and temporary certificate tests must include a component regarding diving safety.

Section 14. Effective 7/1/2000
Amends s. 327.40, F.S., to update provisions regulating the placement of waterway markers for safety and navigation on the waters and shores of the state.

• Adopts the federal Waterway Marking System by reference (33 C.F.R. part 62).
• Expressly prohibits placing markers without a permit from the FWC Division of Law Enforcement.
• Provides the FWC with rulemaking authority pursuant to chapter 120.

Section 17. Effective 7/1/2000
Creates s. 327.49, F.S.

• Provides for the testing of vessels to ensure acceptable boating safety standards.
• Gives the FWC rulemaking authority pursuant to chapter 120.

Section 19. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.54, F.S., pertaining to vessel liveries:

• Clarifies the requirement that liveries provide prerental or preride instruction
• This instruction must include, but is not limited to:
  • the operational characteristics of the vessel;
  • safe vessel operation and vessel right of way;
  • the vessel operator's responsibility for the safe and proper operation of the vessel;
  • and local characteristics of the waterway where the vessel will be operated.
• The instructor must have successfully completed a boater safety course approved by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and the FWC.
• The livery must also display boating safety information in a place visible to the renting public.
• Requires the FWC to set by rule the contents and size of the boating safety information displayed by the livery.
• Raises the age of a person to whom liveries may rent a PWC from 16 years of age to 18 years of age.
• Prohibits liveries from renting a PWC to any person who has not received instruction in the safe handling of PWC in compliance with FWC rules.
• Provides that the person must sign a written statement attesting to the fact that he or she has received said instruction.
• Requires PWC liveries have liability insurance providing coverage of at least $500,000 per person and $1,000,000 per event; the livery must have proof of insurance available for inspection at each location where PWC are being rented.
• Repeals language releasing the livery from liability for accidents occurring during rentals.

Section 20. Effective 7/1/2000
Amends s. 327.60, F.S., to provide that ordinances or local laws adopted by cities and counties may not discriminate against personal watercraft.

Section 21. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.72, F.S., to provide that persons have 30 days instead of 10 days to pay civil penalties assessed for failure to comply with the provisions of chapters 327 or 328.

Section 22. Effective 10/1/2000
Amends s. 327.73, F.S.

• Restates paragraph (p) of subsection (1) to incorporate PWC amendments.
• Provides that persons who fail to comply with court requirements, or who fail to pay assessed civil penalties must pay additional court costs of $12.
• Provides for public works service or community service in lieu of payment of civil penalties.
• Provides for additional community service in situations where noncriminal infractions have caused a death.
• Requires a court appearance for infractions citations if death or serious injury occurred (the violator can not pay the citation by mail).
• Creates new court costs not to exceed $30.

Section 23. Effective 10/1/2001
Amends s. 327.73, F.S., to provide that divers-down flag violations are noncriminal violations subject to a $50 civil penalty.

Section 24. Effective 10/1/2001
Amends s. 327.731, F.S., to add divers-down flag violations to the list of infractions (2 convictions within 12 months) that trigger the violator education requirement. (Note - from 10/1/2000 until 9/30/2001, any ONE dive flag violation will trigger the violator education requirement because it is a chapter 327 misdemeanor.)

Section 25. Effective 7/1/2000
Amends s. 327.803, F.S., to increase the membership of the Boating Advisory Council from 16 to 17.

• The new member will be a representative from the scuba diving industry
• Adds diving safety education to the Council's issues.