SB 58 – Boating Safety

• Establishes graduated penalties for leaving the scene of a boating accident: first-degree misdemeanor for property damage only, third-degree felony for non-serious injury, second-degree felony for serious bodily injury, and first-degree felony for death, with a mandatory minimum 4-year prison sentence if the operator was boating under the influence (BUI)

• Strengthens BUI penalties by requiring mandatory ignition interlock devices on vehicles owned or operated by persons convicted of third or subsequent BUI offenses or those with blood/breath-alcohol levels of 0.15 or higher, and establishes a mandatory 4-year prison term for BUI manslaughter, which is expanded to include the death of an unborn child

• Expands the boating safety education requirement, effective July 1, 2027, to all vessel operators regardless of birth date (previously only applied to those born on or after January 1, 1988), and adds course components on BUI dangers and human trafficking awareness

• Requires the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to include a lifetime boating safety identification card symbol on driver licenses and ID cards at no additional fee, effective October 1, 2026, with applications indicating whether the applicant holds a boating safety card

• Creates a mandatory vessel insurance requirement of at least $100,000 for bodily injury/death and $50,000 for property damage for persons convicted of BUI plus one or more additional boating violations within 12 months, with a second-degree misdemeanor penalty for noncompliance