HB 168 Kentucky House · 2026 Regular Session

AN ACT relating to boating under the influence.

Summary
Amend KRS 235.240 to require that when a motorboat or vessel is involved in an accident that results in a fatality or serious physical injury, the investigating law enforcement officer shall seek a search warrant for blood testing of the operator of the motorboat or vessel unless the test has already been done by consent; apply the penalties for driving under the influence to boating under the influence; require that in addition to all other penalties, a person found guilty of boating under the influence shall complete a safe-boating course and pay $100 to the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources to cover the costs of materials and instruction for the course; amend KRS 235.990 to conform; create a new section of KRS Chapter 15 to require a public safety telecommunicator who receives a report of an accident involving a motorboat or vessel on any waters of the Commonwealth to report the accident to the Kentucky State Police post covering where the accident occurred; provide that the Act may be cited as Keegan's Law.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Jan 7, 2026 Last action Feb 24, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Current/Final · 5 edits
MODERATE
The bill amends Kentucky's boating laws to align penalties for operating a boat under the influence with those for driving a car under the influence. It removes the requirement for a first-time offender to take a safe-boating course and introduces a tiered fine and jail sentence structure based on the number of prior offenses. Additionally, it clarifies the conditions under which law enforcement must seek a warrant for blood testing after a fatal or serious accident.
Scope change
The bill expands the scope of penalties by explicitly linking them to existing DUI statutes (KRS 189A) and adds a specific misdemeanor charge for obstructing officers enforcing boating laws.
ENFORCEMENT

Penalties for boating under the influence are now tied to the penalty structure for drunk driving, including specific fines and jail time that increase with each subsequent offense.

A new provision makes it a Class A misdemeanor to resist, obstruct, or interfere with an officer enforcing boating laws.

The language regarding blood testing warrants after accidents was refined to specify that the investigating officer must seek a warrant unless testing was already done by consent.

REQUIREMENT

The mandatory requirement for a first-time offender to complete a safe-boating course was removed.

The fee for the safe-boating course was standardized to $100 for anyone required to take it.

Floor votes · House Feb 23, 2026

How they voted

920
Passed · 13 other
Total votes 105
Feb 23, 2026
D Democratic21
21 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican84
71 Yea 13
84% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
12
Key actions
3
Committee
6
Feb 24, 2026
Committee
to Committee on Committees (S)
upper
Feb 23, 2026
Lower · Passed
3rd reading, passed 88-0 with Committee Substitute (2)
lower
Feb 19, 2026
Lower · Passed
reported favorably, to Rules with Committee Substitute (2)
lower
Jan 23, 2026
Committee
recommitted to Judiciary (H)
lower
Jan 22, 2026
Lower · Passed
reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1)
lower
Jan 14, 2026
Committee
to Tourism & Outdoor Recreation (H)
lower
Jan 7, 2026
Committee
to Committee on Committees (H)
lower
Jan 7, 2026
Introduced
introduced in House
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.