New Florida Boating Laws: Freedom Act, Safety Cards, Anchoring

The new Florida boating laws that most affect recreational boaters come from two acts: the Boating Safety Act of 2022 (SB 606), which tightened education requirements, rental-company oversight, and anchoring rules, and the Boater Freedom Act of 2025 (SB 1388), which ended random safety-compliance stops, blocked local bans on gas-powered boats, and set up a five-year safety decal tied to registration. Longstanding rules on boating under the influence, derelict vessels, and registration still apply, and the 2025 legislature added new financial consequences for owners of derelict boats.

What the 2025 Boater Freedom Act Changed

Governor DeSantis signed SB 1388 in 2025, and it changed the relationship between boaters and law enforcement on the water. Three pieces matter most.¹

First, officers no longer have authority to stop a vessel for a random safety-compliance check. They need probable cause before boarding or inspecting. That’s a real shift; previously, any vessel could be pulled over for a safety check with no other reason.

Second, local governments can no longer ban gas-powered vessels on public waterways. The rule preempts city or county ordinances that would push boaters toward electric propulsion.

Third, the FWC is directed to create a five-year safety inspection decal program. The “Florida Freedom Boater” decal will be available through tax collectors when you register your vessel, and it will let law enforcement confirm at a glance that a boat has met its safety requirements without stopping it.

Who Needs a Florida Boating Safety Card

If you were born on or after January 1, 1988, and you want to operate a motorized vessel with 10 horsepower or more, you must carry a Florida Boating Safety Identification Card and a photo ID on the water.² The card comes in paper, digital, or electronic format, and once issued it’s good for life. You earn it by completing a course approved by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and passing the exam. The FWC then issues the card after your course provider submits your results.

Anyone born before January 1, 1988, is not required to hold the card.

Exemptions

Several categories of boaters skip the card even if they fall on the younger side of the 1988 cutoff:³

Anyone currently or previously licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard as master of a vessel.
Anyone operating only on a private lake or pond.
Anyone supervised by a person aged 18 or older who holds the card (or is exempt) and is aboard and responsible for safe operation.
Nonresidents carrying photo ID and proof of an equivalent NASBLA-approved course from another state or territory.
Recent boat buyers, for 90 days after purchase, as long as the bill of sale is aboard.
Recent course completers, for 90 days after finishing an approved course, if they carry a photo ID and the course completion certificate.

The 90-day windows expire without warning, and the supervision exemption requires the exempt person to actually be aboard and paying attention, not just named on paper.

Anchoring Limits

Florida designates certain congested waterways as Anchoring Limitation Areas. In the statute’s grandfathered zones, which include several stretches of Biscayne Bay in Miami-Dade County, anchoring is prohibited from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise.⁴ Counties outside Monroe County can also create their own anchoring limitation areas near urban zones with residential docks and heavy traffic. In county-established areas, you cannot anchor for more than 45 consecutive days in any six-month period.

The law does account for real-world problems. You can anchor in a restricted area if a mechanical failure makes moving dangerous (up to three business days, or until repaired), if weather makes leaving unreasonable, or during special events like fireworks or waterfront concerts. Government, commercial fishing, and active recreational fishing vessels are exempt.⁵

Anchoring violations are noncriminal infractions: $100 for a first offense, $250 for a second, $500 for a third or later.⁶ If your vessel is impounded for an anchoring violation, you have to pay removal and storage fees to get it back, though impoundment cannot last more than 48 hours.

Boating Under the Influence

Florida’s BUI law tracks its DUI statute. You commit BUI by operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, chemical substances, or controlled substances, or with a blood- or breath-alcohol level of 0.08 or higher.⁷ Officers can also charge you below 0.08 if they determine your normal faculties are impaired.

A first offense carries a $500 to $1,000 fine, up to six months in jail, a mandatory substance abuse course, up to a year of probation, at least 50 hours of community service, and a 10-day impoundment of your vessel (or a vehicle registered in your name). Every BUI conviction also carries an additional $60 fine.⁸

The penalties climb quickly from there:

Second conviction: $1,000 to $2,000 fine, up to nine months in jail.
Third conviction within 10 years: third-degree felony.
Third conviction after 10 years: $2,000 to $5,000 fine, up to 12 months in jail.
Fourth or subsequent conviction, regardless of timing: third-degree felony with a minimum $2,000 fine.

If your BAC is 0.15 or higher, or a minor under 18 is aboard, the fines roughly double: $1,000 to $2,000 for a first offense, $2,000 to $4,000 for a second, and at least $4,000 for a third or later. Maximum jail time rises to nine months for an enhanced first offense and 12 months for an enhanced second.⁷

Refusing a breath, blood, or urine test during a BUI investigation costs a $500 civil penalty. A second or subsequent refusal is a first-degree misdemeanor, and officers will tell you that before you decide.⁹ Field sobriety exercises stay voluntary and are not covered by implied consent.

Rules for Boat Rental Companies

Every boat rental company (a “livery” in Florida law) has to hold a no-cost livery permit from the FWC before renting any vessel.¹⁰ The permit renews annually. To qualify, the livery has to give the FWC a list of every rental vessel, carry valid insurance, stock enough Coast Guard-approved life jackets for full capacity across the fleet, and keep required safety equipment on site. Any change to that information has to be reported within 10 days.

Before turning over the keys, the livery must give every renter pre-rental instruction covering the vessel’s operational characteristics, safe operating practices, right-of-way rules, and local waterway hazards. The renter signs a written statement confirming they received each part of that instruction, and the livery keeps the signed forms for at least 90 days and produces them for law enforcement on request. A separate rental agreement is also required, including the renter’s name, address, date of birth, number of people aboard, expected return time, and an emergency contact. Rental agreements have to be kept for at least one year.

Operating a livery without a permit is a first-degree misdemeanor. Other livery violations escalate: a first offense (no prior conviction within three years) is a second-degree misdemeanor; a second offense within three years is a first-degree misdemeanor with a $500 minimum mandatory fine; a third within five years is a first-degree misdemeanor with a $1,000 minimum mandatory fine.¹⁰ A livery with more than one violation in three years faces a 90-day operating ban, and the FWC can revoke or refuse to reissue the permit for repeated violations.

Derelict Vessels and 2025 Owner Liability

A derelict vessel is one that is wrecked, junked, or substantially dismantled on state waters. “Substantially dismantled” means at least two of three key systems (steering, propulsion, or hull integrity) are missing or broken. A non-functional outboard bolted to a gutted hull does not save the boat from the designation.¹¹

Owners cannot leave a derelict vessel on state waters for more than 24 hours. If a boat becomes derelict from a sudden event outside your control, such as an accident or a storm, you have seven days to remove or repair it. After a hurricane, that window stretches to 45 days after the storm warning expires. In either case, document the event for law enforcement.

The 2025 legislature added financial teeth. An owner who refuses to pay for removing a derelict vessel can be barred from purchasing another vessel or vehicle. The FWC also runs a Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program to help fund removal, though the owner must first have had a chance to challenge the derelict determination in court or an administrative hearing.¹²

Mandatory Course After Certain Violations

Age and prior experience don’t get you out of this one. The FWC requires you to complete a mandatory violator education course if you are convicted of a criminal boating violation, receive a noncriminal infraction that results in a boating accident, or receive two noncriminal infractions within 12 months.¹³ It’s separate from the initial safety card requirement and applies to boaters of every age and experience level.

Registration Still Required

Every motorized vessel in Florida still has to be registered, and annual fees run from $5.50 for boats under 12 feet to $189.75 for boats 110 feet or longer, with counties adding their own fees on top.¹⁴ Operating with an expired registration is a noncriminal infraction with fines up to $100 for a first offense and $500 for repeats.⁶ The 2025 safety decal program is being built on top of the existing registration system, so keeping registration current is what puts you inside the new inspection framework rather than outside it.

1
Florida Governor’s Office. Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Florida’s Boater Freedom Act
2
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 327.395 – Boating Safety Education
3
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.395 – Boating Safety Education
4
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.4108 – Anchoring of Vessels in Anchoring Limitation Areas
5
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 327.4108 – Anchoring of Vessels in Anchoring Limitation Areas
6
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.73 – Noncriminal Infractions
7
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.35 – Boating Under the Influence; Penalties; Designated Drivers
8
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 327.35 – Boating Under the Influence; Penalties; Designated Drivers
9
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.352 – Implied Consent; Chemical or Physical Tests
10
Florida Senate. Florida Code 327.54 – Liveries; Safety Regulations; Penalty
11
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 823.11 – Derelict Vessels
12
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Derelict Vessel Removal Grant Program
13
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Boating Safety Courses
14
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 328.72 – Vessel Registration