Member's Page

Navigation Law Updates for all Boaters

Life Jacket Wear Requirements

Beginning November 1, 2009, Section 40, Subdivision 1 of the Navigation Law shall be amended by adding new paragraph (e), which reads as follows:No owner or operator of a pleasure vessel less than twenty-one feet, including rowboats, canoes, and kayaks shall permit its operation, between November first and May first, unless each person on board such vessel is wearing a securely fastened United States Coast Guard approved wearable personal flotation device of an appropriate size when such vessel is underway

Failure to wear a lifejacket on such vessels will be considered a violation under Section 73-c if the Navigation Law and is punishable by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $250, applicable to either the operator and/or the owner of the vessel.

Personal Watercraft Rentals

The Navigation Law has been amended to extend the expiration date of Section 73-a, Subdivision 2, regarding the rental of personal watercraft. Persons over the age of 18 renting personal watercraft may continue to operate them without having to hold a boating safety certificate. This provision, set to expire on January 1, 2010, will now expire in 2012.

Disclaimer: JBPS does not guarantee the accuracy of the above legal announcements and is not responsible for any action taken by officials as a result of any errors. You are responsible for knowing, understanding, and following the law.

Photographs of Recent Events

This section of the members page includes on-line photographs from recent Jones Beach Power Squadron events. If you have any photographs of Jones Beach Power Squadron Activities, please send them to Robert Zingale. Please visit often for the latest squadron events.

Current Photographs

• March 2012 - JBPS Change of Watch
• December 2011 - Holiday Party
• August 2011 - Lobsterfest
• July 2011 - JBPS Raft Up
• July 2011 - Great South Bay Raft Up

W.A.K.E. U.P. (Waterways Adopted Keep Environments Undamaged and Protected) is an environmental project created by the Jones Beach Power Squadron. We are a unit of the United States Power Squadron, a nationwide non-profit organization of boating enthusiasts dedicated to making boating safer and cleaner through education. This project is sponsored and endorsed by the Town of Oyster Bay, Town Supervisor John Venditto. Our objective is to emphasize the importance of clean boating and minimize the impact on water quality from boating activities through education and action. Please visit W.A.K.E. U.P. Jones Beach Power Squadron for more details.

USPS Membership Benefit Update

The USPS Education Department is offering its members a new benefit! Maptech now provides free downloads to USPS members on the entire library of NOAA raster digital charts. They are the absolute latest NOAA charts available. The charts can be used with Maptech Digital Chart CD provided with our Boating, Piloting, and Advanced Piloting courses – planning and then uploading routes, waypoints and marks to your GPS – or printing your charts complete with plotted courses. These charts will work with virtually every navigation program on the market. This is another benefit of USPS membership.

To access the protected website, visit the USPS Education Department website and click the “Maptech Download Free NOAA Charts” button at the top of the page. You will need your certificate number and zip code to download the charts.

The National Geospatial - Intelligence Agency (NGA) has also gone digital. NGA was created in 2003 to phase out paper publications previously printed by NIMA and DMA by replacing them with on-line versions. This means that you will now have free access to the latest Nautical publications such as:

• 2002 Bicentenial edition of Bowditch
• Light List covering the entire world
• Notices to Mariners
• Sight Reduction Tables for Celestial Navigation
• Enroute Guides

On-line Ship's Store

Attention members! Our new On-Line Ship Store is available. You no longer have to wait until the General Meeting to order your Jones Beach Power Squadron Merchandise. Click Ship's Store now to place your order and show off your new merchandise at the next raft up.

Our next general meeting is in September. Pete promises to offer a great education event and schedule. Check out the education page now to start planning your continuing education objectives.

Don't forget to check out the Member's event page and your G&P for the many activities offered by JBPS. Have a happy and safe summer.

Personal Water Craft (PWC) Notice

If you operate a PWC, please make sure that you are aware of the following:

1. Anyone who took the Boating Course or Boat Smart is grandfathered as meeting the PWC requirements no matter when they took the course. If asked, their diploma or wallet card will evidence that they took a proctored exam. The proctored exam cards are fairly recent.
2. USPS Members who have passed the above courses must also show their wallet card or diploma again showing that they took a proctored exam. USPS Membership cards don't count. You will get a ticket and then can discuss it with a judge if that is what you want to do.
3. ABC students who take the Proctored exam are also certified as meeting the requirements. They do not have to attend class. Parks and Recreation is not to happy about this but that is the law.
4. Certified Instructors of USPS can show that card in Lieu of the Boating, Boat Smart or ABC Card.

Disclaimer: JBPS does not guarantee the accuracy of the above PWC summary and is not responsible for any action taken by officials as a result of any errors. You are responsible for knowing, understanding, and following the law.

Sobering Numbers

As printed in the current G&P

• Eight-Hundred people or more die in boating accidents each year.
• More then 80% of them drown. Downing is the third largest cause of accidental death in the United States.
• About half of the boating fatalities involve alcohol.
• The US Coast Guard estimates the number of non-fatel boating accidents to be 60,000 or higher with property damage will over 240 million dollars annually.
• Each year - from 1961, when statistics were first kept, through 1992, boating accidents have claimed more lives then airplane or train accidents, and have injured thousands more. Waterways are second only to highways as the sence of accidental deaths in our country.The US Coast Guard and US Congress recognize alcohol is a significant problem on the water.

Expense Reimbursement Voucher

Jones Beach Power Squadron members may print this voucher to request an expense reimbursement for authorized Power Squadron costs that a member incurred. Please print the voucher and obtain required approvals before submitting to the treasurer.