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My Coast Guard
Commentary | Sept. 21, 2023

You can make a difference in boating safety

By Kyle Ford, MyCG Writer

You can help the Coast Guard formulate policy and regulation for recreational boating safety.  

The Office of Auxiliary and Boating Safety invites you to add your questions or concerns for the National Recreational Boating Safety Survey (NRBSS) to their Ideas@Work campaign now through Oct. 26. 

Have you seen something during a recreational boarding that needs to be addressed by the Coast Guard? Is there a new technology in boating that the Coast Guard should be looking at?  

“Recreational boating has accelerated in the last five years since the last survey was developed,” said Jonathan Hsieh, Division of Boating Safety. “It’s easier for people to buy a boat and navigate using a smartphone app, so there are lot of those trends and new practices that maybe we don’t necessarily see at headquarters, but members may see down in the field.” 

Boarding officers, members at Sectors or Stations, auxiliarists and any Coast Guard members, especially those who regularly  boat or kayak themselves, can offer survey suggestions. 

The NRBSS is offered to more than 50,000 boaters every five to ten years and seeks to identify trends in boating safety, usage and technology. The results help the Coast Guard learn the number of recreational boats and boaters using our waterways and properly regulate recreational boating.  

“The survey helps us form policy that makes sense and helps us figure out how many people these regulations are going to affect,” said Hsieh. 

You can find past surveys for reference here

For questions contact SMB-COMDT-CG-BSX Data at SMB-COMDT-CG-BSX-Data@uscg.mil 

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