BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 941
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 16, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
SB 941 (Monning and DeSaulnier) - As Amended: May 27, 2014
SENATE VOTE : 24-10
SUBJECT : Boating: vessel operator cards
SUMMARY : Requires individuals to pass an examination and obtain
a vessel operator card from the Division of Boating and
Waterways (DBW) in order to operate a motorized vessel (i.e.,
boat) on state waterways. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires DBW to develop a program requiring operators of
motorized vessels to pass an online written examination on
boating safety and to carry a vessel operator card when
operating a vessel on waters of the state.
2)Directs DBW to determine the fees for the vessel operator card
(not to exceed $30 for the initial card and $10 for
replacement cards) and provides that fees cover the reasonable
costs of the development, establishment, and operation of the
program.
3)Creates the Vessel Operator Certification Account within the
Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund (HWRF) and requires that
fees collected for vessel operator cards be deposited into the
account.
4)Requires that an amount not to exceed $4 million, upon
appropriation in the annual Budget Act, be transferred from
the HWRF to the Vessel Operator Certification Account in the
form of a loan to be used by DBW to develop and establish the
vessel operator card program.
5)Requires DBW to prepare a report on or before April 1, 2019,
and on or before April 1 annually thereafter, to be posted on
its Internet Web site.
6)Provides that vessel operator card requirements be phased in
by age beginning with persons age 20 or younger until January
1, 2025 when all persons, regardless of age, would be subject
to program requirements.
SB 941
Page 2
7)Exempts certain persons, as specified, from the requirement to
possess a vessel operator card.
8)Requires vessel rental agents, on or after January 1, 2018, to
require the renter of a rental vessel to show proof of
possession of a vessel operator card issued by DBW before
renting a vessel and specifies the type of examination that
may be offered by rental agents.
9)Specifies that a rental vessel operator card is valid for a
period of not more than 30 days from the date of the initial
rental for which the card was issued.
10)Makes operating a motorized vessel without a vessel operator
card an infraction with penalties ranging from $100 for the
first offense to $500 for third and subsequent offenses.
11)Requires the court, in addition to imposing a fine for
operating a vessel without a vessel operator card, to require
successful completion of a boating safety course, approved by
DBW, as specified, and to submit proof of successful
completion within seven months of conviction.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Assigns DBW the authority to regulate the operation of vessels
in the state's inland and coastal waterways.
2)Requires a person to be 16 years of age or older to legally
operate a vessel powered by a motor of 15 horsepower or more,
including personal watercrafts (PWCs).
3)Authorizes persons 12-15 years of age to operate a vessel
powered by a motor of 15 horsepower or more, including PWCs,
if they are supervised on board by a person at least 18 years
of age.
4)Prohibits persons from operating a for-hire vessel that can
carry passengers without a valid operator's license.
5)Requires any person convicted of any moving violation while
operating a vessel to be ordered by the court to complete and
pass a boating safety course approved by the DBW and that
proof of completion and passage of the course be submitted to
SB 941
Page 3
the court within seven months of the time of the conviction.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, this bill would result in a one-time cost of $4
million from the HWRF for a loan to the Vessel Operator
Certification Account in 2015, with repayments beginning in
2023. Additionally, the bill would result in a one-time cost of
$2.3 million from the Vessel Operator Certification Account for
fiscal year (FY) 2015-16 to the division for the creation of the
vessel operator and rental operator card and unknown ongoing
costs of at least $3.9 million from the Vessel Operator
Certification Account beginning in FY 2016-17 for the division
to issue vessel operator cards with a potential significant drop
in costs after 2025 as well as unknown ongoing revenues, likely
in the low millions of dollars to the Vessel Operator
Certification Account beginning in 2017 from vessel operator
card fees with a potential significant drop in revenues after
2025.
COMMENTS : According to the authors, California remains one of
six states that do not require individuals to take a boating
safety course before operating a motorized vessel. They point
out that in 2012 alone there were 247 boating-related injuries,
53 fatalities, and $5.7 million in property damage in California
resulting from boating accidents and they contend that boating
safety could be substantially improved if motorized vessel
operators receive proper safety training. The authors have
introduced this bill to address these problems.
According to the National Association of State Boating Law
Administrators, states with the longest history of boating
education requirements also have the lowest incidents of boating
accidents. Specifically, Connecticut is cited as an example
where once legislation was passed requiring mandatory boating
education, boating fatality rates fell by 56%.
According to the USCG, operator errors account for 70% of
boating accidents. DBW notes that in 2013, only 2,264
individuals took the voluntary boating safety course, which the
author points to as one of the reasons California, with its
nearly 1 million registered vessels, has one of the worst
records for boating accidents in the nation. While no education
or experience is necessary to operate a motorized vessel in
California, DBW does provide boater education courses and issues
cards for successful completion. Completion of a boater
SB 941
Page 4
education course is not required unless ordered by a court
following the conviction of a moving vessel violation.
Writing in support of this bill, the California Yacht Brokers
Association, the Marina Recreation Association, the National
Marine Manufacturers Association, and the Western Boater's
Safety Group note that the bill strikes a good balance between
ensuring that vessel operators are sufficiently educated on
boating safety and vessel operation without imposing excessive
burden that would serve as a barrier to operating a vessel.
They feel that the focused nature of the testing will result in
more informed boaters using California's waterways with the
result of improved safety and reduced accident rates.
Author's amendments:
1)Delete the requirement for rental vessel operator cards : The
2013 California Recreational Boating Accident Statistics
compiled by DBW show that of all vessels involved in
accidents, in California in 2013, only nine percent were
rental vessels. Given this relative low number of rental
vessels involved in accidents, it is unclear whether or not
the program set forth in this bill should involve rental
vessel operators. Additionally, the boating industry notes
that rental agents generally provide vessel information and
boater safety training as part of the rental process. Given
the low incidence of accidents in this group and the
difficulties presented in online testing (given that Internet
access may not be available in all areas) and administrative
hurdles associated with rental operators collecting fees on
behalf of DBW, the authors are opting to remove the rental
operator card requirement from the bill.
2)Require DBW to include program recommendations in its 2023 and
2028 report : This bill specifies that DBW is required to
produce a report to be posted on its Internet Web site on or
before April 1, 2019, and annually thereafter. The data
collected and reported by DBW would be useful to inform
whether or not the vessel operator card program is
successfully reducing boating accidents and if additional
measures should be instituted to achieve this goal; however,
the bill does not require that DBW do anything more than
simply post the data on its Internet Web site. The authors
intend to amend the bill's reporting requirement to include
DBW recommendations in the April 1, 2023, and April 1, 2028,
SB 941
Page 5
reports describing what program changes, if any, may be needed
to improve boater safety in California or, alternatively, the
program's overall effectiveness and recommendation as to
whether or not the program should be continued.
3)Amend the date by which DBW must have vessel operator card
developed from December 31, 2017, to January 1, 2018 .
Previous legislation : AB 2110 (Duvall) of 2008, and AB 1458
(Duvall) of2007, which were similar to this bill, both died in
the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 2045 (Nakano) Chapter 396, Statutes of 2000, required DBW to
approve boating safety courses and to develop a PWC education
course available on DBW's Internet Web site.
AB 1287 (Davis) of 1999, would have required DBW to institute a
boater safety education program, offer two types of
certificates, promoted reciprocity between states and allowed
for a phase-in across different age groups. AB 1287 was vetoed
by Governor Davis who noted in his veto message that there was
little evidence to support that a written test alone would
improve piloting skills of motor boat operators or reduce
boating accidents.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Boaterexam.com
California State Sheriffs' Association
California Yacht Brokers Association
Marina Recreation Association
Mayor Jerry B. Edelen, City of Del Rey Oaks
National Boating Federation
National Marine Manufacturers Association
Recreational Boaters of California
Tahoe Community Sailing Foundation, Inc.
United States Life-Saving Association
Western Boaters Safety Group
11 Individuals
Opposition
None on file
SB 941
Page 6
Analysis Prepared by : Victoria Alvarez / TRANS. / (916) 319-
2093