NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A4431
SPONSOR: Jones TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend chapter 138 of the laws of 1998, amending the navigation
law and the state finance law relating to the operation of personal
watercraft and specialty prop-craft, in relation to the effectiveness
thereof
PURPOSE:
To establish an expiration of provisions of Navigation Law authorizing
the operation of certain leased personal watercraft without a boating
safety certificate.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 8 of Chapter 138 of the Laws of 1998 amending the Navigation Law
and the State Finance Law relating to the operation of personal water-
craft and specialty prop-craft, as amended by Chapter 303 of the laws of
2018 is amended to provide that section five of the act shall expire and
be deemed repealed January 1, 2029.
JUSTIFICATION:
Section 5 (f) of Chapter 138 of the Laws of 1998 allows a person over
eighteen years of age to operate a personal watercraft or specialty
prop-craft without a certificate required pursuant to section forty-nine
of such article when such operation is restricted by the operator of a
livery, or the livery operator's designated agent, to a specified area,
no part of which shall be more than twenty-five hundred feet from the
livery location, or, if removed from the livery location, not more than
five hundred feet from the livery operator or agent assigned by the
livery operator to supervise such operation and such personal watercraft
or specialty prop-craft and or the personal flotation device of the
operator is clearly marked in such a manner as to be distinguishable by
the operator of such livery operator's designated agent within the
permitted areas of operation. This section of the original law is import
tant so that livery operators are still able to participate in the tour-
ism industry by being able to lease their equipment to people vacation-
ing in the area from New York and other states. However, having the law
sunset every two years gives the Legislature an opportunity to monitor
that such practice continues to be beneficial for the industry and
consumer.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021:A.7622(Jones)/S.2168(SERRANO)-Chapter 169 of 2021
2022:A.9978(JONES)/S.8955(SERRANO)- Chapter 366 of 2022
2024:A.10333 (Jones) /S.9250(SERRANO) -. Chapter 191 or 2024
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
This bill will have no fiscal impact to the state.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect Immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4431
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 4, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. JONES -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development
AN ACT to amend chapter 138 of the laws of 1998, amending the navigation
law and the state finance law relating to the operation of personal
watercraft and specialty prop-craft, in relation to the effectiveness
thereof
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 8 of chapter 138 of the laws of 1998, amending the
2 navigation law and the state finance law relating to the operation of
3 personal watercraft and specialty prop-craft, as amended by chapter 191
4 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
5 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that section two
6 of this act shall take effect January 1, 2000 and shall apply to all
7 operators born on or after January 1, 2000 and shall apply to all opera-
8 tors born on or after January 1, 1981, provided further on and after
9 January 1, 2001 and before January 1, 2002 such section shall apply to
10 all operators born on or after January 1, 1978; provided further that on
11 and after January 1, 2002 and before January 1, 2003 such section shall
12 apply to all operators born on or after January 1, 1975; provided
13 further that on and after January 1, 2003 and before January 1, 2004
14 such section shall apply to all operators born on or after January 1,
15 1972, and provided further that on and after January 1, 2004 it shall
16 apply to all operators; and provided further that section five of this
17 act shall expire and be deemed repealed January 1, [2027] 2029. Upon a
18 finding that courses do not exist in sufficient numbers to enable the
19 operators of personal watercraft to earn boating safety certificates in
20 a timely fashion as required by subdivision 1-a of section 49 of the
21 navigation law, as added by section two of this act, the commissioner of
22 parks, recreation and historic preservation is authorized by rule or
23 regulation to modify the dates provided in this section.
24 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08640-01-5
