Nasbla will enhance recreational boating safety (RBS) by collaborating with states, the U.S. Coast guard, and the broader RBS community to promote consistency in statutes, regulations, and enforcement

The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, Inc. (NASBLA) received a $525,000 cooperative agreement from the U.S. Coast Guard under the National Nonprofit Organization Recreational Boating Safety Grant Program (CFDA 97.135) for the performance period of October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. NASBLA will enhance recreational boating safety by developing and updating model policies, standards, and best practices in collaboration with states, the Coast Guard, and the broader recreational boating safety community. The initiative will focus on four primary areas: incident reporting protocols, boating under the influence (BUI) prevention and detection, boater education standards, and life jacket requirements.

The deliverables include the development and refinement of model policies and standards through national policy committees, with dissemination of these materials to state boating safety administrators and other stakeholders via workshops, seminars, conferences, and virtual platforms. By promoting consistency in statutes, regulations, and enforcement practices across states and tracking evolving state laws, this cooperative agreement will strengthen individual state recreational boating safety initiatives, improve overall program effectiveness, and enhance national uniformity in boating safety standards and implementation.

The initiative will focus on incident reporting, boating under the influence (BUI), boater education, and life jacket requirements, while developing and updating model policies, standards, and best practices through national policy committees. These models will be shared via workshops, seminars, conferences, and virtual platforms to encourage collaboration and problem-solving. By tracking state laws and promoting uniformity, this program will strengthen state RBS initiatives, improve program effectiveness, and enhance national consistency in boating safety.