Best bets
Massachusetts boating law summary, Boat and Recreation Vehicle Safety Bureau.
Overview of the basic state boating laws.
Massachusetts boating safety guide, Boat and Recreation Vehicle Safety Bureau.
Provides links to “The Official Massachusetts Boat Safety Handbook,” personal watercraft safety law, a safety handbook, boating study guide, safer paddling video and accident report.
Massachusetts laws
St. 2024, c. 350 An act relative to boater safety ("Hanson Milone Act")
- §§ 2-4B Identification numbers
- § 5 Classes of motorboats; required lighting, fire extinguishers, and signals
- § 5A Personal flotation devices
- § 5C Sewage discharge (see also MGL c. 21, § 27(12))
- §§ 8-8B Operating under the influence of alcohol and controlled substances
- § 9 Accident reports
- §§ 9A-9B Jet skis, surf jets, wetbikes
- § 9D Boater safety education program
- § 13A Scuba divers
- § 13B Kayak instructors
- § 14 Fines and penalties (see also MGL c. 21A, § 10G and § 10H and MGL c. 266, § 63)
MGL c. 131, § 45 City or town can make and enforce boating rules for great ponds not exceeding 500 acres
MGL c. 136, § 6 Operation of boats for non-commercial fishing and recreation
MGL c. 140, § 194 Licensing boat rental business on great pond
MGL c. 231, § 85R No liability for injuries for race committee member or yacht club during boat race or regatta
MGL c. 231, § 85V Tort immunity for volunteer at non-profit sailing program
Massachusetts regulations
302 CMR 12 Parks and recreation
- 12.07 Boating rules on Department of Conservation and Recreation property
310 CMR 9 Waterways
- 9.38 & 9.39 Standards for recreational boating facilities, marinas, boatyards and boat ramps
323 CMR Motorboat titling certificates, personal watercraft, and whitewater rafting (Massachusetts Environmental Police)
Federal laws
46 US Code § 2302 Operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol or dangerous drug
46 US Code §§ 4301-4312 Safety standards for recreational vessels
Federal regulations
33 CFR Part 83 Navigation rules
33 CFR Part 95 Operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol or a dangerous drug
33 CFR Part 100 Safety of life on navigable waters
Selected cases
Commonwealth v. Thompson, 87 Mass. App. Ct. 572 (2015)
The defendant crashed into a sailboat that was tied up, and his passenger died from her injuries. A police officer came to the scene and arrested the defendant. After the defendant was treated at the hospital, the officer asked him to agree to give a blood sample for testing. The defendant later asked the court to block the test results, saying he had not truly agreed.
The law against boating while drunk, like the law against drunk driving, has a rule called “implied consent.” This means that by operating a boat, a person is already considered to have agreed to certain tests. The court decided that the usual constitutional rules about agreeing to a search do not apply here. Because of this, the earlier decision to block the test results was overturned, and the case was sent back to the Superior Court.
O’Shaughnessy v. Besse, 7 Mass. App. Ct. 727 (1979)
Passenger sued harbormaster and patrolman for injuries caused by speedboat collision with unlit floats. The Appeals Court affirmed the lower court’s allowance of the defendant’s motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. The court found that the statute does not require lights on a moored vessel, and the operator of the boat was also at fault for his handling of the boat.
Web sources
Criminal model jury instructions for use in the District Court, Mass. District Court.
Part 5 Motor Vehicle & OUI Offenses, Instruction 5.700 Operating a Boat with a Blood Alcohol Level of .08% or Greater; Instruction 5.710 Operating a Boat While Under the Influence of Intoxicating Liquor.
Massachusetts boating law summary, Mass. Boat and Recreation Vehicle Safety Bureau.
Includes minimum age restrictions, safety education requirements, accident reporting, safety equipment requirements, list of operations that are unsafe and prohibited and operation of personal watercraft.
Massachusetts boating safety guide, Mass. Boat and Recreation Vehicle Safety Bureau, Mass. Environmental Police.
Includes The Official Massachusetts boat safety handbook on boating laws and about safe boat operation. A free PDF version of the handbook is also available.
Massachusetts Marine Trades Association
Links to weather and tide charts.
Massachusetts Office of Fishing and Boating Access
Provides boat and canoe access sites in the Commonwealth.
Massachusetts safety equipment checklist for recreational boats, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Required safety equipment.
Public rights along the shoreline, Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, 2005.
U.S. Coast Guard
Information for recreational boaters such as education resources, safety checks, accident reporting, among others.
Print sources
LexisNexis practice guide: Massachusetts OUI law, LexisNexis, annual. (2024 eBook available with library card)
Section 16.06: Refusal of Breath Test; Section 16.14: Boating Under the Influence.
The little book of boating law, American Bar Association, 2012.
Maritime law: welcome aboard, MCLE, 2013.
Maritime law answer book, Practising Law Institute, 2024.
Maritime mishaps and mistakes, Advanced Legal Studies, 2011.
Massachusetts Practice:
- vol. 10A (Procedural forms annotated), 6th ed. Thomson Reuters, 2009 with supplement, sections 42:20-42:23
- vol. 18A (Municipal law and practice), 5th ed. Thomson/West, 2006 with supplement, sections 20.9 and 20.11
- vol. 28A (Real estate law, with forms), annual, Thomson Reuters, section 26:8
- vol. 35 (Consumer law), 4th ed. Thomson Reuters, 2021 with supplement, sections 7:86-7:88
Motor vehicle Massachusetts police manual 2021: The Massachusetts police reference for motor vehicle law, Law Enforcement Dimensions, 2021.
Chapter 24: Boats & Other Crafts.
Contact
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| Last updated: | December 11, 2025 |
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