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To amend sections 1547.05, 1547.52, and 1547.521 of | 1 |
the Revised Code to exempt persons holding certain | 2 |
Coast Guard endorsements from the requirement to | 3 |
complete a safe boater course or examination and | 4 |
to establish conditions for watercraft safety | 5 |
inspections. | 6 |
Section 1. That sections 1547.05, 1547.52, and 1547.521 of | 7 |
the Revised Code be amended to read as follows: | 8 |
Sec. 1547.05. | 9 |
this section, no person born on or after January 1, 1982, shall | 10 |
operate on the waters in this state a powercraft powered by more | 11 |
than ten horsepower, unless the operator successfully has | 12 |
completed either a safe boater course approved by the national | 13 |
association of state boating law administrators or a proctored or | 14 |
nonproctored proficiency examination that tests knowledge of | 15 |
information included in the curriculum of such a course, and has | 16 |
received a certificate as evidence of successful completion of the | 17 |
course or examination. | 18 |
(B) Division (A) of this section does not apply to an | 19 |
individual who possesses valid merchant mariner credentials issued | 20 |
by the United States coast guard in accordance with 46 C.F.R. | 21 |
10.109 with at least one endorsement of master or operator as | 22 |
defined in 46 C.F.R. 10.107. Such an individual, while operating | 23 |
any recreational vessel on the waters in this state, shall carry | 24 |
onboard documentation of the merchant mariner credentials and | 25 |
required endorsements and shall present the documentation to a | 26 |
watercraft officer or law enforcement officer upon request. | 27 |
(C) No person shall permit a powercraft to be operated on the | 28 |
waters in this state in violation of division (A) of this section. | 29 |
Sec. 1547.52. (A) The division of watercraft shall be | 30 |
administered by the chief of the division of watercraft. The chief | 31 |
may adopt, amend, and rescind: | 32 |
(1) Rules considered necessary by the chief to supplement the | 33 |
identification, operation, titling, use, registration, and | 34 |
numbering of watercraft or vessels as provided in this chapter and | 35 |
Chapter 1548. of the Revised Code; | 36 |
(2) Rules governing the navigation of vessels on waters in | 37 |
this state, including, but not limited to, rules regarding | 38 |
steering and sailing, the conduct of vessels in sight of one | 39 |
another or in restricted visibility, lights and shapes of lights | 40 |
used on vessels, and sound and light signals. As the chief | 41 |
considers necessary, these navigational rules shall be consistent | 42 |
with and equivalent to the regulations and interpretive rulings | 43 |
governing inland waters adopted or issued under the "Inland | 44 |
Navigational Rules Act of 1980," 94 Stat. 3415, 33 U.S.C.A. 151, | 45 |
1604, 1605, 1608, 2001 to 2008, and 2071 to 2073. | 46 |
(3) Rules governing the use, visitation, protection, and | 47 |
administration of wild river areas, scenic river areas, and | 48 |
recreational river areas; | 49 |
(4) Rules governing vessel safety inspection checkpoints, | 50 |
including procedures that comply with statutory and constitutional | 51 |
provisions governing searches and seizures by law enforcement | 52 |
officers; | 53 |
(5) Rules establishing fees and charges for all of the | 54 |
following: | 55 |
(a) Boating skill development classes and other educational | 56 |
classes; | 57 |
(b) Law enforcement services provided at special events when | 58 |
the services are in addition to normal enforcement duties; | 59 |
(c) Inspections of vessels or motors conducted under this | 60 |
chapter or Chapter 1548. of the Revised Code; | 61 |
(d) The conducting of stream impact reviews of any planned or | 62 |
proposed construction, modification, renovation, or development | 63 |
project that may potentially impact a watercourse within a | 64 |
designated wild, scenic, or recreational river area. | 65 |
All rules adopted by the chief under division (A) of this | 66 |
section shall be adopted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the | 67 |
Revised Code and are subject to the prior approval of the director | 68 |
of natural resources. | 69 |
(B) The chief, with the approval of the director, may employ | 70 |
such clerical and technical help as the chief considers necessary. | 71 |
(C) The chief may designate license agents with the approval | 72 |
of the director. | 73 |
(D) The division is hereby designated as the agency to | 74 |
administer the Ohio boating safety program and allocated federal | 75 |
funds under, and the chief shall prepare and submit reports in | 76 |
such form as may be required by, the "Federal Boat Safety Act of | 77 |
1971," 85 Stat. 222, 46 U.S.C.A. 1475(a)(6), as amended. | 78 |
(E) The chief may sell any of the following: | 79 |
(1) Items related to or that promote boating safety, | 80 |
including, but not limited to, pins, badges, books, bulletins, | 81 |
maps, publications, calendars, and other educational articles; | 82 |
(2) Artifacts pertaining to boating; | 83 |
(3) Confiscated or forfeited items; | 84 |
(4) Surplus equipment. | 85 |
Sec. 1547.521. (A) The law enforcement officers of the | 86 |
division of watercraft shall be known as "state watercraft | 87 |
officers." The chief of the division of watercraft and state | 88 |
watercraft officers: | 89 |
(1) Shall develop and conduct educational programs in vessel | 90 |
safety, sanitation, and operation and in other related subjects | 91 |
that the chief considers appropriate or necessary; | 92 |
(2) Shall enforce this chapter and Chapter 1548. of the | 93 |
Revised Code and rules adopted under them, and may enforce laws | 94 |
prohibiting the dumping of refuse, trash, or litter into the | 95 |
waters in this state and Chapters 2925. and 3719. of the Revised | 96 |
Code on all waters in the state; | 97 |
(3) On any lands owned, controlled, maintained, or | 98 |
administered by the department of natural resources and on any | 99 |
waters in this state, shall have the authority specified under | 100 |
section 2935.03 of the Revised Code for peace officers of the | 101 |
department of natural resources to keep the peace, to enforce all | 102 |
laws and rules governing those lands and waters, and to make | 103 |
arrests for violation of those laws and rules, provided that the | 104 |
authority shall be exercised on lands or waters administered by | 105 |
another division of the department only pursuant to an agreement | 106 |
with the chief of that division or to a request for assistance by | 107 |
an enforcement officer of that division in an emergency. The | 108 |
jurisdiction of state watercraft officers shall be concurrent with | 109 |
that of the peace officers of the county, township, or municipal | 110 |
corporation in which the violation occurs. | 111 |
(4) | 112 |
113 | |
114 |
| 115 |
other process issued with respect to any law that they have the | 116 |
authority to enforce. | 117 |
(B)(1) Except as authorized by division (B)(2) of this | 118 |
section, no state watercraft officer or other law enforcement | 119 |
officer as described in section 1547.63 of the Revised Code shall | 120 |
stop or board any vessel solely for the purpose of conducting a | 121 |
safety inspection of the vessel unless the owner or operator | 122 |
voluntarily requests the watercraft officer or other law | 123 |
enforcement officer to conduct a safety inspection of the vessel. | 124 |
(2) A state watercraft officer or other law enforcement | 125 |
officer as described in section 1547.63 of the Revised Code may | 126 |
stop, board, and conduct a safety inspection of any vessel for the | 127 |
purpose of enforcing the laws and rules that the officer has the | 128 |
authority to enforce under this chapter, if either of the | 129 |
following applies: | 130 |
(a) The watercraft officer or law enforcement officer | 131 |
authorized under section 1547.63 of the Revised Code has a | 132 |
reasonable suspicion that the vessel, the vessel's equipment, or | 133 |
the vessel's operator is in violation of this chapter or rules | 134 |
adopted under it or is otherwise engaged in a violation of a law | 135 |
of this state or a local ordinance, resolution, rule, or | 136 |
regulation adopted in compliance with the provisions of this | 137 |
chapter within the territorial jurisdiction of the officer; | 138 |
(b) The watercraft officer or law enforcement officer | 139 |
authorized under section 1547.63 of the Revised Code is conducting | 140 |
a vessel safety inspection in the course of an authorized | 141 |
checkpoint operation in accordance with rules adopted by the chief | 142 |
of the division of watercraft under section 1547.52 of the Revised | 143 |
Code. | 144 |
(C) A state watercraft officer may render assistance to a | 145 |
state or local law enforcement officer at the request of that | 146 |
officer or may render assistance to a state or local law | 147 |
enforcement officer in the event of an emergency. | 148 |
State watercraft officers serving outside the division of | 149 |
watercraft under this section or serving under the terms of a | 150 |
mutual aid compact authorized under section 1501.02 of the Revised | 151 |
Code shall be considered as performing services within their | 152 |
regular employment for the purposes of compensation, pension or | 153 |
indemnity fund rights, workers' compensation, and other rights or | 154 |
benefits to which they may be entitled as incidents of their | 155 |
regular employment. | 156 |
State watercraft officers serving outside the division of | 157 |
watercraft under this section or under a mutual aid compact retain | 158 |
personal immunity from civil liability as specified in section | 159 |
9.86 of the Revised Code and shall not be considered an employee | 160 |
of a political subdivision for purposes of Chapter 2744. of the | 161 |
Revised Code. A political subdivision that uses state watercraft | 162 |
officers under this section or under the terms of a mutual aid | 163 |
compact authorized under section 1501.02 of the Revised Code is | 164 |
not subject to civil liability under Chapter 2744. of the Revised | 165 |
Code as the result of any action or omission of any state | 166 |
watercraft officer acting under this section or under a mutual aid | 167 |
compact. | 168 |
Section 2. That existing sections 1547.05, 1547.52, and | 169 |
1547.521 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed. | 170 |