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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — A new house bill was filed in Florida ahead of the 2025 legislative session to require safety training for all boaters.
“Lucy’s Law” will ensure that anyone driving a boat has at least a “basic understanding of safe boating practices,” according to a press release from Safe Seas Coalition. The bill also increases the penalties for reckless boating to include factors like accidents involving serious injury or death. Those boating under the influence could face driver’s license suspension.
House Bill 289 was filed by Representatives Vanessa Oliver and Vicki Lopez, as the Sunshine State prepares to turn the corner into the spring and summer seasons with boating as a popular daytime activity.
The law is named after 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez, who lost her life in a boating accident in 2023. Now, her family is on a mission to help keep others safe and prevent another family from experiencing a similar tragedy.
“No parent should have to endure the pain of losing a child – especially in a preventable accident. Our family is living proof of what happens when our laws fail to keep up with the times,” the Fernandez family said. “It is too late to save Lucy, but it is not too late to protect the next child and family from experiencing this same heartbreak. We are grateful to Representatives Oliver and Lopez for spearheading this effort, and we are honored this bill carries our Lucy’s name.”
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the state leads the nation in the most boating fatalities, averaging 65 each year. In 2023, there were 659 reportable boating accidents, 59 deaths, and 408 injuries.
Representatives Oliver and Lopez hope this bill will strengthen the training requirements to protect Floridians and save lives.
If the bill passes, it will take effect on July 1.