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Boating Under The Influence? State Assemblyman Authors Boater Safety Bill

SAN RAFAEL (KCBS)— We all know what a DUI is but what about a BUI, as in boating under the influence? A Bay Area member of the state Assembly has authored a bill that would allow law enforcement the right to test the blood of someone they believe may be boating under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Assemblymember Marc Levine says California has the strictest auto safety laws in America, but said statistics show that there were over 5,000 boating accidents in America involving 500 deaths last year.

That's why this week he's proposing AB539 aimed at improving boating safety.

"Alcohol use is the leading known contributing factor in fatal boating accidents. California should have the same strict boating laws that we do for driving cars," Levine said.

Under current law, Levine said if the U.S. Coast Guard or any other law-enforcement agency suspects the operator of a boat has been using drugs or alcohol, they cannot test them.

"What this bill does is allows them to apply for a search warrant to order a test. There's still due process for the warrant for this and we protect that," he said.

He said it would be no different than in the case of a possible DUI.

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