§ 46-27-2. Regulation of personal watercraft.
(a) No person shall operate a personal watercraft at any time between the hours from one-half (½) hour after sunset to one-half (½) hour before sunrise; provided, that police and fire department personnel on official duty may operate personal watercraft with proper equipment and lighting and are exempted from the provisions of this subsection.
(b) A personal watercraft must at all times be operated in a reasonable and prudent manner. Maneuvers that unreasonably or unnecessarily endanger life, limb, or property, including, but not limited to, weaving through congested vessel traffic, circling a larger vessel unreasonably or jumping the wake of another vessel unreasonably, constitutes reckless operation of a vessel and are prohibited.
(c) No person under the age of sixteen (16) shall operate a personal watercraft on the waters of the state unless an adult accompanies him or her or unless he or she has passed a department of environmental management approved or United States Coast Guard approved safety course.
(d) It is unlawful for the owner of any personal watercraft or any person having charge over or control of a personal watercraft to authorize or knowingly permit the watercraft to be operated by a person under sixteen (16) years of age in violation of this section unless the provisions of subsection (c) are met.
(e) No person shall operate a personal watercraft within two hundred feet (200′) of swimmers, divers, shore, or moored vessels, except at headway speed.
(f) Personal watercraft, when launched from shore or returning to shore, must proceed directly to the area where operation is allowed in a direction as near perpendicular as possible, not in excess of headway speed.
(g) No person shall operate a personal watercraft unless he or she and any passenger is wearing a personal flotation device approved by the United States Coast Guard.
(h) No person shall operate any personal watercraft in a reckless manner so as to endanger the life, limb, or property of another.
(i) No person shall operate any personal watercraft unless it is numbered in accordance with § 46-22-4.
(j) A person operating a personal watercraft equipped by the manufacturer with a lanyard-type engine cutoff switch must attach the lanyard to his or her person, clothing, or personal flotation device as appropriate for the specific vessel.
(k) The towns of Charlestown and Westerly have joint jurisdiction over any waters that transcend both jurisdictions, may enter into a binding memorandum pursuant to § 46-23-15.1, and are hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft within their jurisdictions. The ordinances may include a ban or limitation on operation on:
(1) Waterbodies that are less than three hundred (300) acres in size, or four hundred feet (400′) in width;
(2) Waterbodies upon which a tradition of swimming, shellfishing, fishing, paddle sports, or small craft rowing or sailing exists;
(3) Waterbodies that can be demonstrated to be ecologically sensitive;
(4) Waterbodies or portions of them surrounded or bordered by significant concentrations of residential development;
(5) Waterbodies where a history of powerboat regulation already exists; or
(6) Waterbodies where navigational considerations due to congestion can be shown to exist.
(l) The department of environmental management shall review and grant final approval of municipal regulations adopted pursuant to this section.
(m) The town of Coventry is hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft on Tiogue Lake. The ordinances may include a ban or limitation on operation on Tiogue Lake.
(n) The towns of South Kingstown, Narragansett, Middletown, and North Kingstown are hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft on any or all fresh or inland waters of this town. The ordinances may include a ban or limitation of personal watercraft on any waters in this town. To the extent that any body of water may transcend more than one of the towns set forth in this section, each town shall have joint jurisdiction over the body or bodies of water and may enter into a binding memorandum pursuant to § 46-23-15.1 regarding each town’s joint jurisdiction over the body or bodies of water.
(o) The town of Narragansett is hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft on any or all fresh or inland waters of this town. The ordinances may include a ban or limitation of personal watercraft on any waters in this town. To the extent that any body of water may transcend more than one of the towns set forth in this section, each town shall have joint jurisdiction over the body or bodies of water and may enter into a binding memorandum pursuant to § 46-23-15.1 regarding each town’s joint jurisdiction over the body or bodies of water.
(p) The town of South Kingstown is hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft on Narrow River and Green Hill Pond. To the extent that Narrow River transcends the towns of South Kingstown, North Kingstown, and Narragansett, each town shall have joint jurisdiction over such body of water and may enter into a binding memorandum pursuant to § 46-23-15.1 regarding each town’s joint jurisdiction over such body of water.
(q) The town of West Greenwich is hereby authorized to provide, by ordinance, regulations controlling the use of personal watercraft on any or all fresh or inland waters of this town. The ordinances may include a ban or limitation of personal watercraft on any waters in this town.
History of Section.P.L. 1991, ch. 88, § 1; P.L. 1991, ch. 131, § 1; P.L. 1992, ch. 25, § 1; P.L. 1999, ch. 281, § 1; P.L. 2000, ch. 194, § 1; P.L. 2000, ch. 220, § 1; P.L. 2001, ch. 29, § 1; P.L. 2002, ch. 126, § 1; P.L. 2002, ch. 130, § 1; P.L. 2003, ch. 439, § 1; P.L. 2021, ch. 252, § 1, effective July 14, 2021; P.L. 2021, ch. 253, § 1, effective July 14, 2021.