(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), no person under 16 years of age shall operate a vessel powered by a motor of greater than 15 horsepower, except for a vessel that does not exceed 30 feet in length and is designed to use wind as its principal source of propulsion, or a dinghy used directly between a moored vessel and the shoreline or between a moored vessel and another moored vessel.

(b) Except as provided in subdivision (a), no person 12, 13, 14, or 15 years of age shall operate a vessel powered by a motor of greater than 15 horsepower, or a vessel that exceeds 30 feet in length and is designed to use wind as its principal source of propulsion, unless the person is accompanied in the vessel by a person who is at least 18 years of age and who is attentive and supervising the operation of the vessel.

Terms Used In California Harbors and Navigation Code 658.5

  • Person: means an individual, partnership, firm, corporation, limited liability company, association, or other entity, but does not include the United States, the state, or a municipality or subdivision thereof. See California Harbors and Navigation Code 651
  • Use: means operate, navigate, or employ. See California Harbors and Navigation Code 651
  • Vessel: includes every description of a watercraft or other artificial contrivance used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water, except either of the following:

    California Harbors and Navigation Code 651

(c) Subdivisions (a) and (b) do not apply to any of the following:

(1) A person who operates a vessel as a performer in a professional exhibition.

(2) A person engaged in an organized regatta, vessel race, or water ski race.

(3) A person engaged in a marine event authorized pursuant to Section 268.

(d) Any person who violates this section, and any person who permits any other person under 16 years of age to operate a vessel in violation of this section, is guilty of an infraction.

(Repealed and added by Stats. 1997, Ch. 747, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 1998.)

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