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Committee advances bill to require reasonable suspicion before non-consensual boat stops
Summary
H 548 would require reasonable suspicion before law enforcement may stop or board vessels on Idaho waters, aligning boat stops with land-based Fourth Amendment protections; sheriffs warned it could affect a $4 million Recreational Boating Safety grant program.
Senator Hart and Representative Kyle Harris presented H 548, the Idaho Safe Boating Act, which would amend Title 67—Section 7028—to require 'reasonable suspicion that a violation has occurred' before officers may stop or board a vessel on Idaho waters. Sponsors said the measure seeks parity between on-water and on-land stops and to apply Fourth Amendment protections to routine boarding.
Sheriff Chris Goetz of the Idaho Sheriffs' Association testified in opposition, warning that the current practice, supported by the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation and the U.S. Coast Guard through the Recreational Boating Safety (RBS) grant program, brings about $4 million annually to Idaho and relies on largely consensual, educational safety inspections. Representative Kyle Harris said the bill would not prevent consensual inspections at launches and that the primary issue was non-consensual stops on the water without reasonable suspicion. The committee voted to send H 548 to the floor with a do-pass recommendation.
