REPORT TITLE:
Thrill Craft Education


DESCRIPTION:
Implements mandatory safety education for owners of recreational
personal watercraft and other measures recommended by the thrill
craft advisory committee.  Establishes the personal watercraft
safety education special fund.  Loans initial research,
development, and operating moneys to the special fund.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
THE SENATE                              S.B. NO.           2178
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO PERSONAL WATERCRAFT.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that safety education and
 
 2 the establishment of training requirements for personal
 
 3 watercraft owners, as well as rules for areas of personal
 
 4 watercraft operations, are necessary to maintain the integrity of
 
 5 this recreational activity.  The purpose of this Act is to
 
 6 implement the mandatory education and other related measures
 
 7 recommended by the thrill craft advisory committee, which was
 
 8 appointed by the chairperson of the board of land and natural
 
 9 resources in response to Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 128,
 
10 S.D. 1 (Nineteenth Legislature, 1998).
 
11      SECTION 2.  Chapter 200, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended
 
12 by adding three new sections to be appropriately designated and
 
13 to read as follows:
 
14      "§200-A  Mandatory safety education for owners of
 
15 recreational personal watercraft.  (a)  The board shall establish
 
16 a mandatory safety education course for all owners of personal
 
17 watercraft used for recreation.  The required course shall
 
18 include, at a minimum:
 
19      (1)  A written test meeting the minimum standards for
 

 
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 1           boating safety education for personal watercraft
 
 2           approved by the National Association of State Boating
 
 3           Law Administrators;
 
 4      (2)  A state-specific addendum addressing local sea
 
 5           conditions, customs, courtesies, traditions, and
 
 6           restricted areas within the waters of the State; and
 
 7      (3)  A practical test of the owner's capability to operate a
 
 8           personal watercraft.
 
 9      (b)  Beginning January 1, 2002, evidence of successful
 
10 completion of the required course by the personal watercraft
 
11 owner shall be required to obtain registration and numbering of a
 
12 personal watercraft under section 200-31; provided that a
 
13 temporary certificate of a registration number may be issued to
 
14 the owner of a personal watercraft for a period of not more than
 
15 ninety days to allow the owner time to complete the required
 
16 course and to be certified for personal watercraft operation.
 
17      (c)  A person showing evidence of successful completion of
 
18 an approved personal watercraft safety education course issued by
 
19 another state or other organization shall be exempt from the
 
20 written test in subsection (a)(1), but the person shall be
 
21 required to successfully pass the state-specific addendum in
 
22 subsection (a)(2), and the practical test in subsection (a)(3).
 
23      (d)  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91
 

 
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 1 to further implement this section.
 
 2      §200-B  Personal flotation device required for personal
 
 3 watercraft occupants.  All occupants of a personal watercraft,
 
 4 including a person being towed by a personal watercraft, shall
 
 5 wear a personal flotation device conforming to the impact
 
 6 resistance requirements established by the United States Coast
 
 7 Guard, except for persons authorized to operate in high surf
 
 8 conditions, or persons operating patrol or rescue craft, or as
 
 9 otherwise provided by the department.
 
10      §200-C  Personal watercraft safety education special fund.
 
11 (a)  There is established in the state treasury the personal
 
12 watercraft safety education special fund, into which shall be
 
13 deposited:
 
14      (1)  All user fees collected by the department for the
 
15           research, development, and operation of the personal
 
16           watercraft safety education course required by section
 
17           200-A; and
 
18      (2)  Any grants or subsidies relating to the research,
 
19           development, or operation of the personal watercraft
 
20           safety education course required by section 200-A.
 
21      (b)  Moneys in the personal watercraft safety education
 
22 special fund shall be used for the research, development, and
 
23 operation of the personal watercraft safety education course
 

 
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 1 required by section 200-A; provided that the user fees collected
 
 2 by the department for the research, development, and operation of
 
 3 the personal watercraft safety education course shall not be less
 
 4 than the full cost of administering the course.
 
 5      (c)  Expenditures from the personal watercraft safety
 
 6 education special fund shall be made by the chairperson."
 
 7      SECTION 3.  Section 200-23, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 8 amended by adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted
 
 9 and to read as follows:
 
10      ""Personal watercraft" means every description of vessel
 
11 that:
 
12      (1)  Is generally less than thirteen feet as manufactured;
 
13      (2)  Uses an internal combustion engine powering a water jet
 
14           pump as its primary source of motive propulsion;
 
15      (3)  Has a ratio of maximum speed to length of not less than
 
16           three and one-half to one;
 
17      (4)  Is maneuvered by rotating the water jet pump while
 
18           under power, rather than by use of a rudder; and
 
19      (5)  Can be operated by a single operator, but may have the
 
20           capacity to carry passengers while in operation.
 
21 The term includes every description of vessel that is designed to
 
22 be operated by persons sitting, standing, or kneeling on, or
 
23 being towed behind the vessel."
 

 
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 1      SECTION 4.  Section 200-23, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 2 amended by repealing the definition of "thrill craft".
 
 3      [""Thrill craft" means any motorized vessel that falls into
 
 4 the category of personal watercraft, and which:
 
 5      (1)  Is generally less than thirteen feet in length as
 
 6           manufactured;
 
 7      (2)  Is generally capable of exceeding a speed of twenty
 
 8           miles per hour;
 
 9      (3)  Can be operated by a single operator, but may have the
 
10           capacity to carry passengers while in operation; or
 
11      (4)  Is designed to provide similar operating performance as
 
12           a personal watercraft through a combination of small
 
13           size, power plant, and hull design.
 
14 The term includes, but is not limited to, a jet ski, waverunner,
 
15 wet bike, surf jet, miniature speed boat, hovercraft, and every
 
16 description of vessel which uses an internal combustion engine
 
17 powering a water jet pump as its primary source of motive
 
18 propulsion, and is designed to be operated by a person or persons
 
19 sitting, standing, or kneeling on, or being towed behind the
 
20 vessel."]
 
21      SECTION 5.  Section 200-24, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
22 amended to read as follows:
 
23      "[[]§200-24[]]  Rules.  The department shall adopt rules
 

 
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 1 pursuant to chapter 91 to implement the policy and purpose of
 
 2 this part, and to classify vessels into appropriate categories
 
 3 and classes.
 
 4      The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 with
 
 5 respect to the following:
 
 6      (1)  The registration and numbering of vessels;
 
 7      (2)  The operation, use, and equipment of vessels on or in
 
 8           the waters of the State;
 
 9      (3)  The conduct of persons involved in boating accidents
 
10           and in the reporting of accidents and other casualties
 
11           and losses to the department; and
 
12      (4)  The designation of areas of the waters of the State and
 
13           time periods during which [thrill craft] personal
 
14           watercraft may be operated, and waters on or above
 
15           which, and time periods during which, persons may
 
16           engage in parasailing, commercial high speed boating,
 
17           and water sledding; provided that in designating the
 
18           areas, the department shall use the official
 
19           recommendation of the National Marine Fisheries Service
 
20           with regard to the protection of protected marine life
 
21           and habitats in adopting rules to implement this
 
22           section, except as otherwise provided by law."
 
23      SECTION 6.  Section 200-25, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 

 
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 1 amended to read as follows:
 
 2      "§200-25  Fines and penalties.  (a)  Any person violating
 
 3 this part, or any rule adopted pursuant to this part, shall be
 
 4 fined not less than $50 and not more than $1,000 or sentenced to
 
 5 a term of imprisonment of not more than thirty days, or both, for
 
 6 each violation; provided that in addition to, or as a condition
 
 7 to the suspension of, the fines and penalties, the court may
 
 8 deprive the offender of the privilege of operating any vessel,
 
 9 including but not limited to any [thrill craft] personal
 
10 watercraft or vessel engaged in parasailing or water sledding, in
 
11 the waters of the State for a period of not more than thirty
 
12 days[.] for a first offense, and for a period of not more than
 
13 one year for an offense that occurs within one year of a prior
 
14 conviction under this part.
 
15      (b)  In any proceeding for violation of any statute or rule
 
16 relating to the operation of a personal watercraft, the
 
17 registered owner of the personal watercraft, as evidenced by the
 
18 state registration number, shall be held fully responsible for
 
19 the violation, including the payment of all fines and penalties,
 
20 regardless of the identity of the operator; provided that the
 
21 registered owner may present competent evidence that the vessel
 
22 was sold, transferred, or stolen, at the time of the violation,
 
23 in which case the operator shall be held responsible."
 

 
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 1      SECTION 7.  Sections 200-37, 200-38, and 200-39, Hawaii
 
 2 Revised Statutes, are amended by substituting the term "personal
 
 3 watercraft" wherever the term "thrill craft" appears, as the
 
 4 context requires.
 
 5      SECTION 8.  There is appropriated out of the general
 
 6 revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $        , for fiscal
 
 7 year 2000-2001, to be paid into the personal watercraft safety
 
 8 education special fund established in section 2 of this Act.
 
 9      SECTION 9.  The sum appropriated shall be expended by the
 
10 department of land and natural resources for the initial
 
11 research, development, and operation of the personal watercraft
 
12 safety education course required by section 2 of this Act;
 
13 provided that the chairperson of the board of land and natural
 
14 resources shall return to the general fund by June 30, 2003, the
 
15 sum appropriated to the personal watercraft safety education
 
16 special fund by section 8 of this Act.
 
17      SECTION 10.  In codifying the new sections added by section
 
18 2 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute
 
19 appropriate section numbers for the letters used in designating
 
20 the new sections in this Act.
 
21      SECTION 11.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 
22 New statutory material is underscored.
 

 
 
 
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 1      SECTION 12.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2000.
 
 2 
 
 3                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________