Marine Services Bureau
Mandatory Cold Weather PFD Wear
Regulation 13:82-1.4(f)
New Jersey boaters are approaching the second season of the mandatory cold-weather Personal Flotation Device (PFD) wear regulation. Starting in November, no owner or operator of a recreational vessel less than 26 feet—including rowboats, canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards—shall permit its operation between November 1 and May 1 unless each person on board is wearing a securely fastened, United States Coast Guard-approved wearable PFD of an appropriate size while the vessel is underway. A person inside the cabin of a cabin vessel is exempt from this requirement.
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