Looking to treat BUI like DUI

The next time you take a party boat out for a cruise outside Newport Harbor, you may want to assign a DB — designated boater.

With a new bill under review in the state Senate, authorities may soon have the authority to suspend boaters’ licenses if they’re caught operating a vessel while intoxicated.

In a bill introduced last month and set to appear before senators next week, Sen. John Benoit (R-Bermuda Dunes) is looking to reauthorize the DMV to suspend boaters’ licenses for boating under the influence, or BUI, convictions.

The DMV has been treating BUIs like their driving counterparts since the mid-1990s, but a court of appeals ruling last year deemed they do not have the authority.

Benoit’s bill gives the DMV that authority and tacks on a alcohol-awareness class just like you’d get if you were convicted of a DUI.

Benoit has experience in DUI enforcement and stresses the need for safety in our waterways. Local harbor patrol officials couldn’t agree more.

“Anybody who operates a vessel has a great deal of responsibility on the waterways. It’s not only for themselves, it’s for the occupants of that vessel,” said Sgt. Steve McCormick of the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol in Newport Beach.

“While [boating] is a recreational activity, there are still numerous responsibilities the skipper must take into account.”

Harbor authorities have plenty of leeway when it comes to enforcing drunk boaters, officials said. They can range from simple warnings to citations to arrests, depending on the circumstances, McCormick said.

According to the most recent report by the Department of Boating and Waterways, there were 55 boating accident fatalities in California waters in 2007, half in Southern California waters.

Twenty victims of the statewide total were found to be under the influence of alcohol. Three-quarters involved capsized boats or people falling overboard. Of those who drowned, eight in 10 were not wearing life jackets, according to the report.

Nearly half of the alcohol-related fatalities in the water in 2007 were passengers.

According to the report, “The designated driver concept, which is popular in some boating safety literature, has its roots in automobile safety where the possibility of falling overboard and drowning (or swimming too close to the propeller) is not a factor.”

Reporter JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.