2015 Kentucky Revised Statutes CHAPTER 235 - BOATS AND BOATING 235.285 Personal watercraft -- Use for towing -- Prohibitions on use without personal flotation device or self-circling capability -- General prohibitions of vessel operation -- Exceptions -- Supervision of minors.
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235.285 Personal watercraft -- Use for towing -- Prohibitions on use without
personal flotation device or self-circling capability -- General prohibitions of
vessel operation -- Exceptions -- Supervision of minors.
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
A personal watercraft may be used to tow individuals engaged in waterskiing or
similar activities if it has adequate seating capacity and an observer on board to
monitor the progress of the person being towed, or if it is equipped with a rearview
mirror with a minimum field of vision of one hundred sixty (160) degrees mounted
so that the operator can observe the activities of the person being towed.
A person shall not operate a personal watercraft on public waters unless every
individual operating or riding on the personal watercraft is wearing a personal
flotation device that is approved by the United States Coast Guard under 46 C.F.R.
sec. 160, as it may be amended or renumbered.
A personal watercraft that does not have self-circling capability shall not be
operated on public waters unless:
(a) The personal watercraft is equipped with a lanyard-type engine cutoff switch;
and
(b) The lanyard is attached to the person, clothing, or personal flotation device of
the operator.
A vessel operated on public waters shall be operated at all times according to the
provisions of this chapter and the administrative regulations promulgated hereunder.
A vessel shall be operated at all times in a reasonable and prudent manner so as not
to endanger human life, human physical safety, or property. A person shall not do
any of the following while operating a vessel on public waters:
(a) Weave through congested watercraft traffic in a way that endangers human
life, human physical safety, or property;
(b) 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;
(c) Jump the wake of another watercraft in a way that endangers human life,
human physical safety, or property;
(d) Cut between a boat and the individual or individuals being towed by the boat;
(e) 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
(f) 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.
A person shall not operate a personal watercraft on public waters at any time
between sunset and the following sunrise.
A person shall not operate a vessel within fifty (50) feet of a commercial motor
vessel and its tow which is in operation on a waterway, except if the operator of the
commercial motor vessel has given his or her consent.
(7)
(8)
(9)
(a)
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.
(b) 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.
(c) 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.
Subsections (1) to (6) of this section shall not apply to:
(a) A performer engaged in a professional exhibition; or
(b) 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.
The parent, legal guardian, or other adult who has direct supervision over a minor
under the age of eighteen (18) shall not knowingly authorize or permit the minor to
operate a motorboat or personal watercraft in violation of this section.
Effective: July 15, 2014
History: Amended 2014 Ky. Acts ch. 109, sec. 2, effective July 15, 2014. -- Amended
2012 Ky. Acts ch. 6, sec. 1, effective July 12, 2012. -- Created 1998 Ky. Acts ch. 22,
sec. 2, effective March 3, 1998.
Legislative Research Commission Note (7/15/2014). 2014 Ky. Acts ch. 109, sec. 4
provided that that Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Boater Freedom Act."
This statute was amended in Section 2 of that Act.
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