Matthew — as the BoatUS article is talking about graphics, I read the line in question below (“vessel may only be identified…”) to mean that the vessel should adhere to either state labeling standards if NOT documented, or federal labeling standards if it IS documented.
So you should NOT have bow numbers on a documented vessel. — Fred Fred Street -- Minneapolis S/V Oceanis (1979 C&C Landfall 38) -- on the hard in Bayfield, WI :^( > On Feb 7, 2018, at 10:40 AM, Matthew L. Wolford via CnC-List > <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > > I reviewed the first two bullet points from the BoatUS recital, and at least > in PA they are not (or may not) be correct: > Vessels may only be identified as either a State Registered Vessel or a > Federally Documented Vessel - NOT BOTH. > Not true in PA. There is a difference between titling and registration. > In PA, Federally documented boats are not required to be titled under the PA > Fish and Boat Code (and, I believe, cannot be State titled). However, they > must be registered. This change was made to the State statute in the 1990s > and became effective on March 1, 1998. Under the old requirements, federally > documented boats were exempt from State registration. Under the new > requirements, federally documented boats used for recreational purpose must > be registered. As far as I know, no one has challenged this scheme, and I > doubt a court would conclude that State registration requirements are > preempted because they are help the State keep track of boats and are not in > conflict with federal law regarding documentation. > When a vessel becomes federally Documented, the State Registration Numbers > and Letters must be removed. > This I don’t know, but I suspect BoatUS is correct. The reason is that > federal law has requirements about how a federally documented boat must be > identified. To get around this issue, the PA Fish and Boat Commission > requires decals (not State registration numbers) to be placed on the boat. > Most sailboat owners place the decal on the mast. > > As we discussed in a previous thread about this issue, this is a > complicated and unclear area of law which, not surprisingly, the U.S. Supreme > Court has not addressed. BoatUS would be wise not to give legal advice in > promoting the sale of graphics.
_______________________________________________ Thanks everyone for supporting this list with your contributions. Each and every one is greatly appreciated. If you want to support the list - use PayPal to send contribution -- https://www.paypal.me/stumurray
