By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Station Galveston Flotilla
The Texas Outdoor Annual, an official publication of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Division, is my go to reference for anything having to do with fishing, hunting, and boating in Texas. Although I have a hard copy of the Outdoor Annual in my boat, I find the easiest way to read and search it is on the smartphone app. It is especially useful when I catch a fish that I do not usually catch and I need to know the size and keep limits. This column will review the Boat Operations section of the Outdoor Annual.

Reasonable and Prudent Standard
Like most regulatory schemes, the Texas boating regulations spell out what you can’t do or must do, with some should do’s thrown in. The regulations mostly use the “reasonable and prudent” standard rather than giving the absolute limit on a particular activity. This standard makes a regulation subject to interpretation, and that can be a good thing. What may not be reasonable and prudent action in one case might be reasonable and prudent in another case. I personally use the “hair raised on the back of my neck” rule to judge whether an action is reasonable and prudent. That particular rule is built into our DNA, but it is not always expressed or it is overridden by ignorance or the “watch this” rule. Let me say that ignorance is not being used as a derogatory term here; its meaning here is that someone simply doesn’t know the rule. As usual, ignorance of the law is no defense, and fines and jail time can attach to any citations. So, let’s look at the prohibitions under Texas law.

Collision Avoidance
“It is unlawful to operate at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent or greater than will permit the driver to stop the vessel within the assured clear distance ahead.” The clearest evidence against you on this one is that you hit someone or something. Here is a concept I would like to introduce you to: being able to stop within half the distance of a boat that is on a collision course with you. If you are traveling in a channel and there is an oncoming boat, then you are potentially on a collision course with that boat. The best move is to adjust your course and slow down, but often the channel is so narrow you can’t appreciably adjust your course. Here is a hypothetical: You are running in a narrow channel; you round a curve and see another boat operating in the channel toward you about 200 feet away. At the speed you are operating, you could bring your boat to a stop within 150 feet. That is 50 feet from the approaching boat. That sounds like a safe speed, right? But you forget that the other boat is moving toward you. Let us say that boat can stop within 100 feet from you at the speed he is going. That is a 50-feet overlap. Although you might be able to stop your boat within 150 feet, you would collide with the other boat after moving only 100 feet. That distance is called the closing distance, and you have only a few seconds of operation to judge the other boat’s speed and your distance from that opposing boat. What would the reasonable and prudent boat operator do? That is a question for the administrative judge, provided you survive the collision and have to answer for your actions or lack thereof. A rule of thumb is that you cannot depend on the other person to follow the reasonable and prudent standard. You must take action to guarantee your safety. If you can’t change course, slow down or stop.

Boat Wakes
“It is unlawful to operate in a manner to cause a hazardous wake or wash.” Boat operators are liable for all damage caused by their wakes. The offense of “Create Hazardous Wake/Wash” is a Class C misdemeanor in Texas. In Texas, a Class C misdemeanor is punishable by a fine up to $500. There is no jail time associated with a Class C misdemeanor. In 2023, the last year for which the Coast Guard has statistics, accidents caused by “force of wake/wave” were the tenth of the top ten causes of accidents in the U.S. for that year. There were 134 accidents reported as being caused by wakes, resulting in 5 deaths and 99 injuries. Pay attention to those No Wake zones; they are there for a reason.

Circular Course
“It is unlawful to operate in a circular course around another vessel, PWC, or individual engaged in water activities unless retrieving a downed or fallen water skier or a person engaged in similar activity.” I see this most often with PWCs circling each other. The chance of having a collision is too great, and for that reason it is illegal.

Mooring to ATONs
“It is unlawful to moor or attach to any buoy, beacon, light marker, stake, flag or other aid to safe operation, or to move, remove, displace, tamper with, damage or destroy the same.” I see fishing vessels tying off to fixed day beacons and lighted beacons all the time. Some boaters may be ignorant of the rule, but some know better and disregard the rule anyway. There are mooring buoys that you can legally moor to, but mooring to aids to navigation buoys and fixed aids is prohibited.

Anchoring
“It is unlawful to anchor in the traveled portion of a river or channel so as to prevent, impede, or interfere with safe passage of any other boat through the same area.” If you anchor in a channel lawfully, that is, you don’t interfere with other boat traffic, be sure to adjust your anchor if the tide changes and you swing out into the channel.

Swimming Areas
“It is unlawful to operate within an area designated as bathing, fishing, swimming, or otherwise restricted.” This one is pretty self-explanatory, and fortunately there were no accidents involving violation of this law in 2023.

Skiing at Night
“It is unlawful to engage in water skiing, surfboarding or other similar activity between the hours of ½ hour after sunset to ½ hour before sunrise. This shall not apply to vessels used in recognized water ski tournaments, competitions, exhibitions or trials, provided that the water area is adequately lighted.” It is easy to lose track of the time and miss the sun dropping below the horizon; for that reason, you are afforded 30 minutes of darkness when water skiing. I think I would want to be picked up before it was so dark that my tow boat couldn’t see me.

Boating Under the Influence
“It is unlawful to operate while intoxicated (loss of mental or physical faculties, or blood alcohol content of 0.08 or higher). It is just like driving a car while intoxicated; you can’t do it. Alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in fatal boating accidents. In 2023 there were 211 reported accidents involving alcohol, with 79 deaths and 201 injuries. This violation carries stiff penalties: The First conviction is punishable by a fine not to exceed $2,000, confinement in jail not to exceed 180 days or both; the second conviction is punishable by a fine not to exceed $4,000, confinement not to exceed one year, or both; and a third conviction punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000, imprisonment for not more than 10 years or less than 2 years.

Willful or Wanton Disregard
“It is unlawful to operate any vessel or manipulate any water skis, aquaplane or similar device, in a willful or wanton disregard of the rights or safety of others and at a speed or in a manner to endanger or likely to endanger any person or property. (Conviction punishable by a fine of not less than $200 nor more than $2,000 or by confinement in jail not to exceed 180 days or both). The reasonable and prudent standard applies. “Aquaplane” is the official term for a kneeboard.

Sightseeing Boats
“It is unlawful to swim or dive within 200 yards of any sightseeing or excursion boat except for maintenance purposes or unless within an enclosed area.”

Diver Down
“It is unlawful to operate within 50 feet of a ‘Diver Down Flag’ or operate a boat within 150 feet of a ‘Diver Down Flag’ except at headway/steerage speed.” There were no reported accidents involving this law in 2023, thankfully.

Rules of the Road
“It is unlawful to fail to comply with the USCG Inland Rules of the Road.” If you aren’t familiar with the Rules of the Road, you have no business operating a boat.

Engine Cut-off Switch
“The engine cut-off switch must be worn by the operator of any vessel under 26’ in length that is equipped with the ECOS (engine cut-off switch), and the vessel is being operated at greater than headway speed.” Yes, you can take the lanyard off if operating at headway speed. Headway speed is 6 miles per hour or the slowest speed to travel and still maintain steerage. I attach my lanyard to my wrist using a bracelet fastened with Velcro. It was designed for jet skis, but works great for my purpose.

Summary
The boating season is approaching, and now is a good time to review the regulations involving safe boat operation. I also recommend reviewing the Rules of the Road. You can download the Outdoor Annual app on your phone and have the Texas regulations at your fingertips. For those of you that hunt and fish in Texas, it is time to renew your hunting and fishing licenses, as they expired on September 1 (for those who purchase their licenses annually. Some people get the 365-day license that expires 365 days from the date of purchase).

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