As soon as Gov. Jay Nixon signs it, a bill allowing out-of-state visitors to get a onetime, temporary boating safety ID card will become law - allowing Lake of the Ozarks area companies that rent or sell boats to do more business this summer while also letting those visitors know Missouri has a boat operators licensing requirement.
State Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, promoted the temporary ID proposal in Senate Bill 719.
Missouri's existing safe boating law requires all boat operators who were born after Jan. 1, 1984, to take a test and obtain a safe boating card from the Missouri State Highway Patrol before operating a watercraft on the state's waterways. That created problems for the out-of-state visitors who didn't know about the licensing requirement and wouldn't have time to comply.
Under the new law, if Nixon signs it, Missouri companies that rent or sell vessels can issue a temporary boating safety identification cards to a non-resident. The temporary card is valid for up to seven days - providing the individual still meets Missouri's minimum age requirement, 14, for operating a vessel in the state.