PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference Monday to continue to express his support for a bill that would halt law-enforcement officers from using boat safety inspections as a pretense for “intrusive” checks of “people who are acting responsibly” on Florida waters.
Press play above to watch the news conference
Introduced by Senator Jay Trumbull in February, the “Boater Freedom Act” would require a change in a state law that allows law enforcement officers to pull over boaters for safety inspections when no probable cause or suspected violations have occurred.
The bill would also establish the right to boat by preempting local governments from banning the sale or use of boats based on fuel sources, according to DeSantis.
“We will ensure you can buy the vessel you want,” DeSantis said.
Under the proposal, DeSantis said the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission would also be directed to work with county tax collectors to establish a boater decal that could be obtained at registration to “reassure law enforcement that the boater has done the due diligence of inspecting and maintaining proper boater safety requirements.”
If passed, the bill would go into effect on July 1.