New N.J. Boating Laws Place Regulations on Jet-Skis, Wakeboarding and Towing

Credit: New Jersey State Police

Two New Jersey boating regulations recently signed into law for the 2024 summer season will be enforced over the upcoming holiday weekend, state police announced Tuesday.

The laws, each separate, pertain to the operation of personal watercraft – commonly called Jet-Skis – as well as any vessel that is towing a water-skier, wakeboarder or inflatable.

PWC Riding

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A passenger seated in front of the driver of a PWC. (Credit: New Jersey State Police)

The first law, N.J.A.C. 13:82-1.13, concerns those operating PWCs (jet-skis) with more than one person on board. In some cases, the operator of the PWC will sit behind a passenger on the vessel, with the passenger – often a child – in between the driver and the controls. This practice is banned under the new law.

As the law reads: The owner or certified operator of a personal watercraft (PWC) shall not allow any person or persons to ride between the certified operator and the steering controls of the personal watercraft (PWC).

Water-Skiing, Wakeboarding and Towing

A boat towing an inflatable. (Credit: Bernard Spragg NZ/Flickr/ Creative Commons)

The second new law in effect this season, N.J.A.C. 13:82-3.1, holds that all power vessels – whether a traditional boat or a PWC – conducting waterskiing operations, including wake surfing, must keep at least 200 feet distant from any wharf, marina, dock, pier, bridge structure, abutment, persons in the water, other vessels, any shore, approved aid to navigation, or mooring.

This distance limitation includes not only the vessel itself, but the towline and skier.

State Police directed anyone with questions on the new laws, or existing boating regulations, to visit the agency’s Marine Services Bureau webpage for more information.