(1) No person under sixteen years of age shall operate a motorboat in this state except as provided in this section.
(2) A person fourteen years of age or older who has not reached his or her sixteenth birthday may operate a motorboat only if he or she:
Completes a boating safety course approved by the division of parks and wildlife;and
Has a boating safety certificate issued by the boating safety course provider in his orher possession.
No person shall permit or knowingly authorize a motorboat to be operated by a person under sixteen years of age; except that a person fourteen years of age or older who has not reached his or her sixteenth birthday may be permitted or authorized to operate a motorboat if he or she has met the boating safety and certificate requirements of subsection (2) of this section.
No owner or operator of a vessel livery or an agent or employee of such owner oroperator shall lease, hire, or rent a motorboat to or for operation by any person under sixteen years of age; except that a person fourteen years of age or older who has not reached his or her sixteenth birthday may be permitted or authorized to operate a motorboat if he or she has met the boating safety and certificate requirements of subsection (2) of this section.
Any person who violates this section is guilty of a class 2 petty offense and, uponconviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of one hundred dollars.
It is the intent of the general assembly that no general fund dollars be appropriatedfor the purpose of implementing the requirements of this section.
Source: L. 97: Entire section added, p. 1605, § 3, effective January 1, 1998. L. 2019: (5) amended, (HB 19-1026), ch. 423, p. 3697, § 20, effective July 1.
Cross references: For the short title ("Respect the Great Outdoors Act") and the legislative declaration in HB 19-1026, see sections 1 and 2 of chapter 423, Session Laws of Colorado 2019.