Quote Originally Posted by TR21Bassin View Post
Lets require everyone to take a boater safety coarse. Sure lets add some more cost to everyone out there. Thats what we need. No matter how you take a boater test or try to regulate some new license its going to cost money to do this. Who will pay that bill?
Charlie
It's that type of mentality that will have to change.

As for who is going to pay for it? What do you think citations are for? By putting the mandatory coarse completion into effect, you create a means for officers to collect money to support the examinations from those who neglect to comply. The ones who neglect to comply with the safe boating campaign are probably the ones who need to take the course the most.

Even if the test costs you a one-time fee of $20, I think you could live with it. If you get a discount on your boat owner's insurance because of it for every year thereafter, you would recover that $20 and then some just in your first year.

Spending $20 and taking maybe 20 minutes to pass an online course would be well worth the benefits that would come from it. It won't cure all the problems, but for every person that learns to veer right when meeting head-on, the greater the chances of saving lives.

Such a program would help offer peace of mind to tournament co-anglers who get in boats with total strangers. The co-angler's life is in the hands of the boat operator, and right now there is nothing to ensure that the boater knows how to navigate safely or know what to do in an emergency situation.