Revise watercraft laws related to nighttime boating and skiing
Summary
HB 930 revises Montana’s watercraft laws to allow nighttime towing of persons engaged in waterskiing, surfboarding, or similar activities, which current law generally prohibits between sunset and sunrise. The bill creates an exception for vessels that properly illuminate both the towing vessel and the person being towed, as determined by rules adopted by the Fish and Wildlife Commission. It also preserves existing exceptions for professional exhibitions and authorized regattas or races.
The bill keeps the existing requirement that an observer accompany a towing vessel, and it maintains the additional adult observer requirement when the operator is 12 years old or younger. It also leaves in place the rule that right-of-way laws applicable to the towing vessel apply to the person being towed. In addition, the bill provides a $1,000 general fund appropriation to the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks to develop rules and distribute information related to the new nighttime towing provisions.
Impact
HB 930 would amend section 23-2-529, MCA, by narrowing the current sunset-to-sunrise prohibition on towing persons on waterskis, surfboards, or similar devices and by authorizing the Fish and Wildlife Commission to adopt safety rules for illuminated nighttime towing. The bill would also require the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks to spend a small general fund appropriation on rulemaking and public outreach. Its practical effect would be to expand permitted boating activity while shifting some implementation details to agency rulemaking and safety standards.
Sentiment
The available vote history suggests the bill generated mixed to unfavorable sentiment in the House. It was first advanced out of the House Fish, Wildlife and Parks Committee on a 19-1 vote to table, indicating some committee support for further consideration, but it later failed on the House floor when taken from committee and placed on second reading by a 43-48 vote. No committee transcript is available, so the record shows procedural support in committee but insufficient floor support for passage.
Contention
The main point of contention appears to have been whether Montana should permit nighttime waterskiing and similar towing activities at all, and if so, under what safety conditions. Supporters likely viewed the bill as a modernization of boating rules with lighting and commission-based safeguards, while opponents appear to have been concerned about safety, enforcement, and the risks of nighttime recreation on public waters. The narrow appropriation and delegation of rulemaking authority to the Fish and Wildlife Commission were likely secondary issues, but the floor vote indicates the broader policy change itself was the central dispute.