New Life Jacket Law – Minnesota.

From the AP – Star Tribune.

Life jackets for kids requirement signed into law
Associated Press
May 6, 2005 VESTS0507
A new state law requires children under ten to wear life jackets while boating.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed the Grant Allen law, named after Grant Jestus, a five-year-old drowning victim from Blaine. Jestus fell off a boat two years ago without a life preserver.

The new law doesn’t apply to children who stay under the deck of a boat or in an enclosed cabin, those riding on licensed commercial boats or in boats anchored for swimming or diving.

Forty other states already have laws requiring children to wear life jackets on boats. Federal law requires children under 13 to wear life preservers, but doesn’t cover all the states’ waterways.

What is the age requirement on the new law?

10

It is too bad a law has to be put in place for a subject like this. And because of a kid dying is why the law was made. It would have been so much easier for all, if that kid was in his life jacket. It is just flat out commonsense that you put a kid in a life jacket……..

My daughter, who is 11 can swim better than a fish!!! But she still wears and will wear her life jacket when the boat is motoring, just like everyone else in the boat.

Last year, my buddy lost his nephew (21 years old) to a boating accident, that if he would have worn his life jacket, would be alive today.

Put ’em on!!!

Guys? What the differance between the way the law was…and is now…I thought anyone under the age of 12 had to wear one…with the above exceptions.

PS my book says anyone under the age of 85 need to wear one…after that…they generally just don’t care…

I like the spirit of it, I hate new laws. Say you are trolling on a 100 degree day and you 9 year old who swims great wants to take off his life jacket, you cant do it? Or if you are verticle jigging (but not anchored) and have the lake to yourselves?

I know people can still fall out of a boat. But I also know that people can walk out into an intersection, fall out of a tree, hit their heads diving….life is dangerous.

We need people to watch their kids and teach them right from wrong, we dont need new laws.

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Guys? What the differance between the way the law was…and is now…I thought anyone under the age of 12 had to wear one…with the above exceptions.

PS my book says anyone under the age of 85 need to wear one…after that…they generally just don’t care…

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The law you are referring to was a Federal Law covering Coast Guard patrolled waters. (St Croix & Mississippi) This new law covers all inland waters in Minnesota.

-J.

Thanks Jon.

Again, I think it’s too bad that it has to be a law…BUT I would rather have my kid be hot on a 100 degree day than to not have my kid.

With the PDF’s that are out there today…there isn’t a good reason for anyone to be without one ON. Even that ding dong Rolan Martin wears one on his TV show…and he’s a BASS guy! (ok..settle down…just a little humor)

Heck with the weather the way it’s been…it keeps in body heat!

Unfortunatly…there’s way too many parents out there that don’t do those “right” things…for one reason or other…just watch a boat ramp sometime.

Wasn’t it just last week two tykes drown in a pool of water…that had a fence around it?

Cheap insurance in my book…

As I state many times before…If I knew I was going to fall out of the boat when I woke up in the morning…I would put on my pdf…or…I would stay in bed.

Now ask me if I can get my daughter or wife to wear one…

They changed the law on throw cushions too,they no longer work as life jackets

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I like the spirit of it, I hate new laws. Say you are trolling on a 100 degree day and you 9 year old who swims great wants to take off his life jacket, you cant do it? Or if you are verticle jigging (but not anchored) and have the lake to yourselves?

I know people can still fall out of a boat. But I also know that people can walk out into an intersection, fall out of a tree, hit their heads diving….life is dangerous.

We need people to watch their kids and teach them right from wrong, we dont need new laws.

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I also hate new laws, but I wear my life jacket at all times while on the water. I’m afraid at 60 years old I will get so excited while landing a fish that I will fall in. I bet kids can get just as excited as I do.

If all adults would wear a life jacket and set an example for the kids we wouln’t need laws.

JIM

Rarely will you catch me with a life jacket on. I feel I’m old enough to make my own decisions. Sometimes I don’t wear my seatbelt either. Life is full of joices, some days we choose well, some days we don’t. I do believe they are a good thing for kids though!!

“You know that was the time I was most frightened? Waitin’ for my turn. I’ll never put on a lifejacket again. So, eleven hundred men went into the water. Three hundred and sixteen men come out, the sharks took the rest, June the twenty-ninth, nineteen-forty five. Anyway, we delivered the bomb. “

Robert Shaw as Capt. Quint in the movie Jaws

Kooty , YOU .. R E B E L .. YOU (we must be brothers in arms)

I’ve been known to run with scissors.

When I really want to live on the edge, I take the stairs two at a time with a sucker in my mouth.

I wear mine as a good example to my son and for my benefit. Even though I’m a good swimmer and grew up on Lake Michigan, I’m living proof that my fat don’t float!

Whoa, now that’s just crazy talk. Never run with a sucker in your mouth, a white bass…maybe! I’ll be here all night.

BA DOOMP BOOM

I tend to agree with Kooty; we are all old enough to make our own decisions. Years ago I was in a car accident which involved my car rolling down a hill. I didn’t have my seat belt on and ended up with seven broken vetebrae in my back. My wife, who was wearing a belt walked away with no injuries. I now wear my seat belt. Nonetheless, when to wear a life jacket is a personal decision and not something that should be dictated by Federal or State regulation. During the winter months I wear it; in summer no way. My kid’s, when younger also wore one, but that was my decision, not some politician’s.

All I can say is it is about time.
Federal regulations on Federal waterways is you must wear a PFD while underway. Age 13 and under.
This is not a new Law.
On the Mississippi river your childern need to wear PFD’s.
I think it is about time the State came around.
Now if we can get classes for boat Operations.
Just my two cents.

Greg,

to what extent would you like the government to control your life; curious.

I think this law is B.S. My kids always wear a PFD while Traveling, but they don’t need one while their bobber fishing in some back bay. Driving to the lake on our roadways is more Dangerous than anything else they’ll ever do, has anyone seen what the leading cause of death is for those under 18? Not lack of pfd use, drugs or alcohol use,Wheelin or snowmobiling, its Auto Accidents.

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Now if we can get classes for boat Operations.
Just my two cents.

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Sometime we pass laws to protect those who can’t protect themselves. Sometimes I disagree sometimes not. If we have to put a tag on a hair drier that says “do not use in shower” then a lifejacket law is ok with me.
How about a boat liscence? Id be all for it, written as well as driving test required. Can’t buy/own a boat without it.

Fishaholic…being the devils avocate that I am…

We have car d/l testing…and our car drivers aren’t any better than the boat operators!

I think I just change my stance on PFDs…There shouldn’t be a law at all…same with seat belts. Do they save lives…yes…but

When they repealed the helmet law for motorcycles I continued to wear a helmet…the way I have it figured is that if you don’t care enough about yourself, your family including your kids…don’t wear a helmet, a seat belt or a PFD. I should be up to you…

…and will make more room on the roads, lakes and rivers for me!

Will someone put my soapbox away!

Really I guess I thought kids had to have life jackets on anyways…

That being said I don’t see much problem with this, I used to always have a life jacket on just to go out on our dock as a kid.

Still the bottom line here remains, life jackets have not been and never will be, meant for only those that cannot swim. They are there incase you have an accident, hit your head, get knocked out of a boat, and such.

Yeah this will probably suck for the kids on the really hot days, but saving even one life in my book is well worth the hassle.

You can always look into the inflatable life jackets, sure they can be spendy, but they are 100Xs more comfortable anyday than your “normal” foam ones.

YMMV

No one put the soap box away on me yet…

Sorry MN…you snuck in while I was posting this…(now that you mention it…I had to wear the big orange thing on the dock too…didn’t bother my fun!

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A new requirement, for children under age 10 to wear a life jacket

while boating on Minnesota waters, was signed into law by Gov. Tim

Pawlenty Thursday and went into effect Friday, May 6. Called the “Grant

Allen Law,” the measure was named in memory of the child who drowned

after falling out of his father’s boat in 2003.

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Wonder if Grant Allens’ dad would rather have been force to have Grant wear a pfd? Or to have paid for a $150. inflatable PDF for his son…than a funeral.

Sorry, if that’s too hard core.

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Greg,

to what extent would you like the government to control your life; curious.

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Yeah, one day we have to make children under 10 wear a life jacket that could save their lives and next we’ll have a tracking Microchip planted in ours heads….

Your paranoid stop watching so much TV……

The penalty is more than reasonable.

PENALTIES

– written warning only for the FIRST offense – until May 1, 2006

– petty misdemeanor for second offense during period above and any offense on or after May 1, 2006.

Good Law.

Good idea, just more $$$ the State of Minnesota can spend. Unfortunately, I am from Wisconsin and we do even worse. How about a bait casting license; lord knows we need a test; don,t want to hook the kids or the dog.

2fishy! A baitcasting test! You must have been watching when I went fishing for Stillakid a couple years ago!

Yeah…there are some extreams…most people don’t think that it’s a law to have a kid in a car seat now a days…because it is the right thing to do.

I’m from rural MN and lived there when the seat belt law was passed…I had a real hard time with that. (Don’t them $@#$@# in St Paul have anything better to do?) But since moving to the metro area…my truck doesn’t move until everyone is buckled up.

Not that seat belts are going to save everyone…but at least if something happen and I’m NOT the one that dies…I’ll feel slightly better knowing that I did everything I could. (I did say slightly better)

It’s a proven fact that most drowndings could have been prevented by wearing a simple life jacket.

This really doesn’t have anything to do with the law (except they just made it law)…it’s about doing what’s right for your or my kid…IMO I guess the way I look at it…we shouldn’t have to have a law that say it’s a crime to commit murder…common sense right?

Ps we do have too many laws in MN…can’t argue that!

I question the exceptions to the law, basically the part written….”or in boats anchored for swimming or diving.”

What if you are anchored to fish? Would that activity not fall under the exception clause also, and are all CO’s going to use the same interpretation of what activities are allowed under the “exception”?

I personally am very glad to see a law where kids need to wear a life jacket. It would be very hard to live with a child drowning because I didn’t have a life jacket on the child that fell overboard. Very tuff to live with when I could have saved a life if I just would of put a life jacket on him or her.
Thanks, Bill

I AGREE every child needs a pfd while on a boat , i mean it would be hard to deal with the fact a child or anyone for that matter, drown off your boat and yet you had a pfd available to them. and i think its your responsibilty to make sure everyones safe on YOUR boat . jus my opinion