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Florida Senate - 2025 CS for SB 1388 By the Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; and Senator Trumbull 601-03465-25 20251388c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to vessels; providing a short title; 3 amending s. 253.0346, F.S.; including Clean Marine 4 Manufacturers within the Clean Marine Program; 5 amending s. 327.45, F.S.; specifying that the Fish and 6 Wildlife Conservation Commissions authorization to 7 establish protection zones includes modifying the 8 allowable means of certain vessel positioning to 9 prevent significant harm to certain springs; revising 10 what constitutes significant harm; amending s. 327.47, 11 F.S.; authorizing certain grants to be awarded for the 12 construction and maintenance of publicly owned parking 13 for boat-hauling vehicles and trailers; amending s. 14 327.56, F.S.; prohibiting an officer from performing a 15 vessel stop or boarding a vessel without probable 16 cause; prohibiting an officer from performing a vessel 17 stop or boarding a vessel under certain circumstances; 18 providing that a violation of safety or marine 19 sanitation equipment requirements is a secondary 20 rather than a primary offense; amending s. 327.70, 21 F.S.; requiring the commission, in coordination with 22 the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, 23 to create the Florida Freedom Boater safety 24 inspection decal for specified purposes; providing for 25 the award of such decal; providing requirements for 26 such decal; authorizing an officer to stop a vessel 27 for a lawful purpose when the officer has probable 28 cause or knowledge to believe a violation of certain 29 provisions has occurred or is occurring; creating s. 30 327.75, F.S.; providing a short title; defining the 31 terms energy source and watercraft; prohibiting 32 specified entities from restricting the use or sale of 33 watercraft based on the energy source used by such 34 watercraft; amending s. 379.226, F.S.; revising 35 provisions prohibiting the issuance of a license to a 36 vessel owned by certain alien powers; providing an 37 effective date. 38 39 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 40 41 Section 1.This act may be cited as the Boater Freedom 42 Act. 43 Section 2.Subsection (3) of section 253.0346, Florida 44 Statutes, is amended to read: 45 253.0346Lease of sovereignty submerged lands for marinas, 46 boatyards, mooring fields, and marine retailers. 47 (3)For a facility designated by the department as a Clean 48 Marina, Clean Boatyard, Clean Marine Manufacturer, or Clean 49 Marine Retailer under the Clean Marina Program: 50 (a)A discount of 10 percent on the annual lease fee shall 51 apply if the facility: 52 1.Actively maintains designation under the program. 53 2.Complies with the terms of the lease. 54 3.Does not change use during the term of the lease. 55 (b)Extended-term lease surcharges shall be waived if the 56 facility: 57 1.Actively maintains designation under the program. 58 2.Complies with the terms of the lease. 59 3.Does not change use during the term of the lease. 60 4.Is available to the public on a first-come, first-served 61 basis. 62 (c)If the facility is in arrears on lease fees or fails to 63 comply with paragraph (b), the facility is not eligible for the 64 discount or waiver under this subsection until arrears have been 65 paid and compliance with the program has been met. 66 Section 3.Subsection (2) of section 327.45, Florida 67 Statutes, is amended to read: 68 327.45Protection zones for springs. 69 (2)The commission may establish by rule protection zones 70 that restrict the speed and operation of vessels, or that 71 prohibit or modify the allowable means of anchoring, mooring, 72 beaching, or grounding of vessels, to protect and prevent 73 significant harm to first, second, and third magnitude springs 74 and springs groups, including their associated spring runs, as 75 determined by the commission using the most recent Florida 76 Geological Survey springs bulletin. Significant This harm 77 includes negative impacts to water quality, water quantity, 78 hydrology, wetlands, and aquatic and wetland-dependent species 79 where the operation, anchoring, mooring, beaching, or grounding 80 of vessels is determined to be the predominant cause of negative 81 impacts. 82 Section 4.Section 327.47, Florida Statutes, is amended to 83 read: 84 327.47Competitive grant programs.The commission shall 85 develop and administer competitive grant programs funded with 86 moneys transferred pursuant to s. 206.606(1)(d). Grants may be 87 awarded for the construction and maintenance of publicly owned 88 boat ramps, parking for boat-hauling vehicles and trailers, 89 piers, and docks; boater education; deployment of manatee 90 technical avoidance technology; and economic development 91 initiatives that promote boating in the state. The commission 92 may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 120 to implement this 93 section. 94 Section 5.Section 327.56, Florida Statutes, is amended to 95 read: 96 327.56Safety and marine sanitation equipment inspections; 97 probable cause; qualified. 98 (1)An No officer may not shall board any vessel or perform 99 a vessel stop in this state unless to make a safety or marine 100 sanitation equipment inspection if the owner or operator is not 101 aboard. When the owner or operator is aboard, an officer may 102 board a vessel with consent or when the officer has probable 103 cause or knowledge to believe that a violation of a provision of 104 this chapter has occurred or is occurring. 105 (2)An officer may not perform a vessel stop or board a 106 vessel for the sole purpose of performing a safety or marine 107 sanitation equipment inspection. A violation of safety or marine 108 sanitation equipment requirements is a secondary offense, rather 109 than a primary offense An officer may board a vessel when the 110 operator refuses or is unable to display the safety or marine 111 sanitation equipment required by law, if requested to do so by a 112 law enforcement officer, or when the safety or marine sanitation 113 equipment to be inspected is permanently installed and is not 114 visible for inspection unless the officer boards the vessel. 115 (2)Inspection of floating structures for compliance with 116 this section shall be as provided in s. 403.091. 117 Section 6.Subsection (2) of section 327.70, Florida 118 Statutes, is amended to read: 119 327.70Enforcement of this chapter and chapter 328. 120 (2)(a)1.The commission, in coordination with the 121 Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, shall create a 122 Florida Freedom Boater safety inspection decal for issue at 123 the time of registration or renewal, signifying that the vessel 124 is deemed to have met the safety equipment carriage and use 125 requirements of this chapter. Upon demonstrated compliance with 126 the safety equipment carriage and use requirements of this 127 chapter at the time of registration or renewal during a safety 128 inspection initiated by a law enforcement officer, the operator 129 of a vessel shall be issued a Florida Freedom Boater safety 130 inspection decal signifying that the vessel is deemed to have 131 met the safety equipment carriage and use requirements of this 132 chapter at the time and location of such inspection. The 133 commission may designate by rule the timeframe for expiration 134 of, and the specific design for, the Florida Freedom Boater 135 safety inspection decal. However, a decal may not be valid for 136 less than 1 calendar year or more than 5 years at the time of 137 issue and, at a minimum, must meet the standards specified in 138 this paragraph. All decals issued by the commission on or before 139 December 31, 2018, are no longer valid after that date. 140 2.The Florida Freedom Boater safety inspection decal, if 141 displayed, must be located within 6 inches of the inspected 142 vessels properly displayed vessel registration decal. For 143 nonmotorized vessels that are not required to be registered, the 144 Florida Freedom Boater safety inspection decal, if displayed, 145 must be located above the waterline on the forward half of the 146 port side of the vessel. 147 (b)If a vessel properly displays a valid safety inspection 148 decal created or approved by the division, a law enforcement 149 officer may not stop the vessel for the sole purpose of 150 inspecting the vessel for compliance with the safety equipment 151 carriage and use requirements of this chapter unless there is 152 reasonable suspicion that a violation of a safety equipment 153 carriage or use requirement has occurred or is occurring. This 154 subsection does not restrict a law enforcement officer from 155 stopping a vessel for any other lawful purpose when the officer 156 has probable cause to believe that a violation of this chapter 157 has occurred or is occurring. 158 Section 7.Section 327.75, Florida Statutes, is created to 159 read: 160 327.75Watercraft Energy Source Freedom Act. 161 (1)SHORT TITLE.This section may be cited as the 162 Watercraft Energy Source Freedom Act. 163 (2)DEFINITIONS.For the purposes of this section, the 164 term: 165 (a)Energy source means any source of energy used to 166 power a watercraft, including, but not limited to, gasoline, 167 diesel fuel, electricity, hydrogen, and solar power. 168 (b)Watercraft means any vessel or craft designed for 169 navigation on water, including boats and personal watercraft. 170 (3)PROHIBITION ON RESTRICTIONS BASED ON ENERGY SOURCE. 171 Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, a state agency, 172 municipality, governmental entity, or county may not restrict 173 the use or sale of a watercraft based on the energy source used 174 to power the watercraft, including an energy source used for 175 propulsion or used for powering other functions of the 176 watercraft. 177 Section 8.Subsection (3) of section 379.226, Florida 178 Statutes, is amended to read: 179 379.226Florida Territorial Waters Act; alien-owned 180 commercial fishing vessels; prohibited acts; enforcement. 181 (3)No license shall be issued by the Fish and Wildlife 182 Conservation Commission under s. 379.361, to any vessel owned in 183 whole or in part by any alien power, which subscribes to the 184 doctrine of international communism, or any subject or national 185 thereof, who subscribes to the doctrine of international 186 communism, or any individual who subscribes to the doctrine of 187 international communism, or who shall have signed a treaty of 188 trade, friendship and alliance or a nonaggression pact with any 189 communist power. The commission shall grant or withhold said 190 licenses where other alien vessels are involved on the basis of 191 reciprocity and retorsion, unless the nation concerned shall be 192 designated as a friendly ally or neutral by a formal suggestion 193 transmitted to the Governor of Florida by the Secretary of State 194 of the United States. Upon the receipt of such suggestion 195 licenses shall be granted under s. 379.361, without regard to 196 reciprocity and retorsion, to vessels of such nations. 197 Section 9.This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.
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