1. NASBLA Boating Education Reciprocity Update
April 5, 2009
Gail Kulp
NASBLA Education Director

2. A National Look at Boating Education
In 2000, there were only 17 states with some type of mandatory boating education requirement in place.
There are now 48 states with some type of mandatory education…

3. States Requiring Motorboat Operator Proof of Education
As of January 21, 2009 RI DC AS GU
NMI
PWCs Only (Certain Ages or Rentals Only)
8 include everyone or will after a phase-in period is complete
17 target only youth
17 use a born on or after date
6 have legislation only for PWC operation or rental
8 have no requirements PR
Born-on or after date
Certain Ages Only (Usually preteens, teens &/or young adults only) VI
Short-Term Phase-In (requires participation by all boaters)
No Education Requirements
Note that each state has unique requirements that may impact different age operators.

4. Definition of Reciprocity
Noun
The relation existing between two states when each of them gives the subjects of the other certain privileges on the condition that its own subjects shall enjoy similar privileges at the hands of the latter state
(Black’s Law Dictionary)
The best example of this is with driver’s licenses. A person can drive all over the country as long as that person has been given a legal driver’s license for their home state. This pertains to visitor drivers only. If a person moves to another state, he must follow the state’s requirements for obtaining a legal license in that new state.

5. Reciprocity for Boating Safety Education Certificates
Reciprocity means that a boater’s NASBLA-approved course completion certificate will be accepted when that boater is temporarily operating a boat in another state
What does the national look at reciprocity requirements show us?
Lots of confusion on what reciprocity means and how it relates to education certificates. Reciprocity for boating is only about proof of course completion and not all of the other issues related to operating or occupying a vessel. It is not an umbrella approval to substitute the visiting state’s rules, it is very specific to proof of course completion.
Using the state driving license example again, I would be able to drive in any state as long as I possessed a state license. However, I may not be able to drive 70 mph on the interstate (which is the speed limit for me at home) if that wasn’t allowed in the state that I was visiting. I could even be given a ticket for not having my passengers buckled up if that was a law in the visiting state, but not in my home state.
NASBLA Reciprocity Survey in 2008 provided the following information (next slide)

6. States’ Reciprocity Requirements for Visiting Boaters
The data reflected here comes from a March 2008 survey. A new survey is being conducted to update this information as well as gather additional information on the topic. RI DC AS GU
NMI
Accepts any NASBLA-approved course completion certificates
30 accept any NASBLA-approved course completion certificate
12 accept certificates only if issued by a state agency
3 require visiting boaters to meet their home state requirements (NE, MA and RI)
3 states/territories have limited reciprocity
Colorado – only accepts certificates for proctored courses
Connecticut – only accepts PWC certificates from MA, NY and RI but accepts motorboat certificates from any classroom course issued by state
Puerto Rico – requirement for 24 hour proctored course must be met. Since no other states have requirements that strict, no other certificates are accepted in Puerto Rico (for now)
8 states don’t require proof of course completion PR
Accepts certificates only if issued by a state agency VI
Requires visiting boaters to meet home state requirements
Limited reciprocity (restrictions on what is accepted)
No requirement to show certificate
Note that each state has unique education requirements that may impact different age operators or boat types.

7. Related Committee Work
FY06 and FY07 Education Committee surveyed states and developed a checklist for evaluating education programs in the states
FY09 Boating Course Administration Subcommittee charged with defining reciprocity as it relates to the concept of “adequate education” – current survey out
First Bullet - The checklist included aspects such as inclusion of a NASBLA-approved boating safety course, presence of a dedicated education coordinator on staff, work with educational outreach and awareness campaigns, etc. It was also noted that there are a wide variety of programmatic aspects available and that the state agencies differ greatly from one another however, this doesn’t mean that the education programs in these states are not successful.
Second bullet - Develop a definition for adequate education that includes a measurement tool that would be applicable to the states in determining whether or not their programs meet that definition.

8. Focus of Subcommittee’s Survey
Which groups issue “official” NASBLA-approved certificates in the states?
Does each state maintain a student information database and, if so, what data is collected?
First bullet – In other words, can private providers issue certificates? How about USCG Aux or USPS? Also ask whether the certificates are printed by the state agency or outscored to another company
Second bullet – By knowing if a database is used and what information is kept on it, we get an idea of what information could be captured in a national database if such a thing were to exist one day. Also ask what information is printed on the course completion certificates. This also ties in with our neighbors up north. Transport Canada began maintaining a national database in February of 2009 and they will be issuing all of the certificates in the future. Course providers must all capture the same information in individual databases and then transmit this data to the centralized database housed with Transport Canada.

9. Reciprocity Survey Questions*
If someone comes to your state/territory as a visitor and they have a NASBLA-approved certificate issued by ____, would they be allowed to temporarily operate a motorboat in your state/territory?
State Agency – 100% yes
Private Course Provider – 88% yes
USCG Aux or USPS – 94% yes
*Only 17 states have responded to the survey thus far
Avoided the word “reciprocity” since so many people have different definitions for the term and answer based on their personal definitions
If someone comes to your state/territory as a visitor and they have a NASBLA-approved certificate issued by a state agency would they be allowed to temporarily operate a motorboat in your state/territory? Also ask about certificates issued by private course provider, USCG Auxiliary or USPS.
The survey results as of Friday showed 17 states had completed the survey thus far. Of those, all will accept a certificate from another state agency, 15 of them will accept a certificate from a private course provider and 16 of them will accept USCG Aux or USPS certificates for visiting boaters.

10. Results of Course Completion Database Pilot Project

11. Reciprocity Survey Questions*
What are the boating education requirements for visitors wishing to operate a ______ in your state/territory?
*Only 17 states have responded to the survey thus far
Type of boat
Certain Age Requirement
Born-on date
All operators required
No requirement
Motorized 6 7 1 3
PWC 8
(2 had born-on date)
(2 had certain age) 2
Non-powered 17
What are the boating education requirements for visitors wishing to operate a motorboat in your state/territory? (Also ask about PWC and non-powered vessel)
The survey results as of Friday showed 17 states had completed the survey thus far. Of those, the requirement of whether someone needs a NASBLA-approved course completion certificate is dependent on the type of boat they are operating as well as their age. For example, visitors operating a motorboat would be required to complete a NASBLA-approved course if they were teenagers visiting 6 of the states. Depending on their birthday, they might be required to complete a course in 7 of the states. In one of the states, everyone is required to complete a course regardless of age and in 3 of the states, there are no requirements.
For PWC operation, there are two states which require a born on or after date as well as that the operator be a certain age for operation. Therefore 8 states require PWC operators of a certain age to complete a course, 6 states use a born-on date to determine requirements, 3 states require it for everyone and 2 have no requirements.
None of the states had requirements for non-powered vessels, but 2 states noted that they had requirements for sailing vessels.

12. Final Survey Results
Shared at NASBLA Education Committee meeting April 18-19
Will be made available on the NASBLA website for anyone interested
The final survey results will be shared and analyzed at the NASBLA Education Committee meeting April 18-19
The results will be made available on the NASBLA website for anyone interested shortly thereafter.

13. Any questions?
 1. What happens when you are visiting a state and that state has mandatory boating education (of some type) and your home state doesn't? The survey results show that 14 of the 17 states require visiting motorboat operators to have proof of course completion (regardless of home state requirements) depending on the operators age. For PWC, it is 15 of the 17 states. This isn't any different than having to follow any other laws while visiting states. If I was a smoker, I would be allowed to smoke inside public spaces in some states, but not allowed in other states. Just because my home state lets me smoke inside a restaurant, doesn’t mean the state I'm visiting will do the same.
2. Will law enforcement officers recognize a visiting boater based on their home state requirements as opposed to the state that they are currently boating in? The ongoing survey shows that all of the 17 states will recognize a certificate issued by another state agency, 16 will recognize a USCG Aux or USPS certificate and 15 will recognize a private provider certificate. However, that goes along with the answer above. If the visiting state requires a certificate, then they have to have one.