Long Island Officials: Major Crackdown On Drunken Boating Coming

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- The summer's biggest celebration on the Fourth of July weekend is nearly upon us, and thousands of boats will soon cram the waterways for fun and fireworks.

And as CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff reported, boat operators could face serious penalties if they are caught drinking.

"We're sending a message loud and clear to anyone who's even thinking of drinking and operating a boat, and here's the message -- don't do it," said North Hempstead Town Supervisor Judi Bosworth.

"They will be arrested," said New York state Sen. Jack Martins (R-Old Westbury). "There will be consequences."

Those consequences could soon include losing your license to drive a car. New drunken boating laws just passed in the New York State Legislature and they link DWIs to BWIs, and allow judges to consider a boater's driving history on the road.

"It makes sense that if you're a drunk driver with a car, and if you're a drunk driver on a boat, if you get caught again, you should have enhanced penalty," said Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas.

The same .08 blood alcohol limit for driving also applies to boating. But drunken boating isn't easy to detect.

Bay constables and the Coast Guard patrolling Long Island waterways, and say they look for safety violations -- which give them the right to board.

"Lights, lack of a life jacket on a child, an excessive wake – there's a myriad of reasons we can stop you," said North Hempstead Chief Bay Constable Mallory Nathan.

"The Coast Guard doesn't need a search warrant to go on board to ensure safety," said Kings Point U.S. Coast Guard Chief Ryan Fuller.

A charter operator said the boating culture slow to change.

"They're bringing friends on their boat. You know, everybody wants to have a good time, and you know, it's obviously all fun and games until something goes wrong," the charter operator said.

It went horribly wrong four years ago, when an overloaded pleasure boat capsized off Oyster Bay, killing three children. There are still no federal boat capacity regulations, but New York State is phasing in required boat safety training.

But so much about boating safety is still unregulated, and left up to the boat operator. Officials said that is why it is so important for that operator at least to be sober.

The law linking drunken driving to drunken boating has not yet been signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Alcohol is the leading cause of boating fatalities.

There are half a million boat owners across New York state.