FWC details implementation of 2025 boating laws including Boater Freedom Act, derelict-vessel changes and Lucy’s Law

Bill Holcomb, section leader for Boating and Waterways at the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, presented to the Florida Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee on FWC’s implementation steps for five bills enacted in the 2025 legislative session that affect boaters, enforcement and waterways infrastructure.

The briefing matters because the laws change how marine law enforcement may stop vessels, modify criteria for springs protection zones, introduce a long-term anchoring permit, strengthen derelict-vessel enforcement, address migrant vessels, and raise penalties for certain boating-related offenses; the changes affect enforcement practices, permitting and agency rulemaking timelines.

Holcomb reviewed the major provisions of each bill and the agency’s implementation timeline. For Senate Bill 1388, the “Boater Freedom Act,” Holcomb said the law makes violations of some safety-equipment requirements secondary offenses, prohibits boarding a vessel without probable cause of a safety-law violation, requires a new Florida Freedom Boater safety-inspection decal issued at registration, and allows the FWC to modify (rather than ban) anchoring and mooring in springs protection zones; he said rulemaking is underway and decals should be available to vessel owners by mid-to-late November.

On Senate Bill 164 (Vessel Accountability), Holcomb said the law expands tools to prevent derelict vessels by revising at-risk and derelict-vessel standards, increasing enforcement windows (from 18 to 24 months for repeated at-risk violations), shortening response time for occupied vessels and creating a no-cost electronic long-term anchoring permit for vessels that anchor within one linear nautical mile of a designated anchorage point for 14 or more days in a 30-day period. Holcomb said the electronic permit portion takes effect Jan. 1, 2026; other provisions were effective July 1, 2025.

Holcomb provided statistics on derelict and at-risk vessels: FWC is tracking about 365 derelict-vessel investigations statewide, about 210 of which are pending removal (awaiting contractor action or removed but not cleared), and the agency removed nearly 500 derelict vessels in the last year. He said the agency typically sees about 600 new derelict vessels added to the database each year and that hurricanes account for many cases rendered derelict.

On House Bill 289 (Lucy’s Law), Holcomb said the law tightens penalties for some boating offenses, aligns penalties with similar vehicular crimes, and establishes mandatory boating-safety education and parole-style restrictions for convicted operators. The agency is updating enforcement forms and training to reflect higher violation levels.

Holcomb also described Senate Bill 830, which sets procedures and a five-day removal notice for migrant vessels arriving on Florida waters, and House Bill 735, which expands grant eligibility and creates a Clean Marine Manufacturers program administered by the Department of Environmental Protection to incentivize environmentally responsible marine operations and allow certain lease discounts.

Holcomb told the committee FWC officers have received initial training and will receive ongoing refresher training, that amended and new rules are in the rulemaking process (slated for FWC commission review in November), and that online forms and enforcement documentation have been updated to reflect new violation levels. The long-term anchoring electronic-permit system is under development and targeted for rollout Jan. 1, 2026.

Senators asked technical questions. Senator Harrell asked whether the state recoups removal costs; Holcomb said vessels removed with upfront legislative or grant funding must be repaid by the owner when identified, and failure to reimburse can lead to loss of vessel or vehicle registration privileges. Senator Smith asked whether the change to springs protection zones (raising the threshold from “harm” to “significant harm” and requiring vessel activity to be the predominant cause) will make such zones harder to establish; Holcomb said the change adds a requirement that subject-matter experts and affected agencies weigh in so the commission can evaluate whether vessel activity is the primary cause, and that the agency has not yet completed a full post‑legislation Springs Protection Zone process to demonstrate the effect.

Holcomb said FWC has coordinated with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles on the new decal issuance process, updated electronic enforcement forms and distributed new stickers and notification materials to field officers. He said FWC is working with the Division of Emergency Management on procedures for migrant-vessel response and has trained field officers on the statutory timelines.

The presentation concluded with committee members thanking Holcomb for the update and noting that several rule packages will come before the commission for final action in the months ahead. The briefing provides the public and stakeholders a schedule for when new permitting, enforcement and education tools will be available.