DeSantis signs law that restricts when authorities can stop boaters
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law the Boater Freedom Act on Monday, which places new restrictions on when state and local law enforcement can stop boaters and board their vessels.
DeSantis was joined at the a news conference in Panama City ahead of Memorial Day weekend by sponsors Rep. Griff Griffitts and Sen. Jay Trumbell, who touted SB 1388 as one that rids boaters of 'government overreach.'
The bill, which goes into effect July 1, says an officer cannot stop a boat or board someone's boat solely to do a safety or equipment inspection. Officers are only allowed to stop a boat when there is probable cause of a violation.
DeSantis at the news conference Monday said the law previously allowed officers to stop boaters without probable cause or suspicion of any violation in order to conduct safety inspections, like property searches, which could then lead to unexpected further law enforcement action. Boaters will be protected from 'suspicionless searches' under the new law, DeSantis said.
He appeared to reference one stop of a boater that went viral online, where Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers pulled a Jupiter man over for violating a slow speed minimum wake zone and then arrested him for BUI, even though testing later proved he was sober.
'If there's a basis to intervene, that's one thing … But to just go in without any basis is not the way we want to do it in the state of Florida,' DeSantis said. 'And I think it's unnecessarily created friction between the boating community and some folks in law enforcement.'
Trumbell, a frequent boater himself, said one of his neighbors shared with him that he had been stopped by law enforcement out on the water three times in the same day last year for random safety inspections. The bill does not get rid of inspections, he said, but 'ensures that they happen for the right reasons and not at random.'
'We do respect our law enforcement officers and their mission, but there has to be a balance,' he said. 'This bill is about restoring common sense to marine enforcement.'
Boaters will be able to receive a 'Florida Freedom Boater' decal to show law enforcement that they are keeping the needed safety requirements and 'strikes an appropriate balance between ensuring compliance with boating laws and reducing unnecessary disruptions for law-abiding boaters,' the governor's office said in a news release Monday.
The law also prohibits state and any local governments from imposing restrictions on the types of boats people can use or sell based on the fuel it uses. DeSantis said there has been a 'movement' with some local governments to regulate boat usage based on its energy source.
'We know a lot of families opt for used vessels and of course they're gonna be gas powered,' he said. 'People want to be able to afford this, and if you impose these draconian restrictions, you're not gonna be able to do it.'
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