Oneida County Sheriff offers Boater Safety Courses

ONEIDA COUNTY SHERIFF OFFERS BOATER SAFETY COURSES FOR THE 2018 BOATING SEASON

Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol has announced the 2018 dates that the Sheriff’s Marine Patrol will be offering the “New York State Boater Safety Course”.

In order to make these classes as convenient as possible for residents, they are being held in various locations throughout Oneida County. Classes will be conducted on April 14th and April 28th at the Oneida County Department of Public Works conference room, 5999 Judd Road in Oriskany. A class will also be held at the Lake Delta Yacht Club located at 6487 Karlen Road in Rome on June 9th. Lastly, a class hosted by the Kayuta Lake Improvement Association will be held on June 23rd at the Forestport Town Hall located on Woodhull Road in Forestport. All classes begin promptly at 9:00am and because it is an 8 hour class, it is recommended that everyone bring snacks or a lunch. Classes are limited to 30 students and additional classes will be offered at a later date if the need arises.

In New York State, you must hold a safety certificate if:

• you were born after May 1st 1996 and you will be operating a motorboat.

• you operate a personal watercraft (PWC) and are at least 14 years of age and older (as of 1/1/09 you must be 14 yrs. old to operate a PWC alone).

• if you are less than 10 years old, you may operate a motorboat (non-PWC) only if someone over 18 or someone between the ages of 10 and 18 who holds a safety certificate is on board with you.

To sign up for one of these free, eight hour classes, please call the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office at 315-765-2222 and speak with Sue Goding.

To find additional class dates and locations, you can also visit the NYS Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation’s web site at www.nysparks.com/boats or call 1-800-336-2628 to get information on the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary & U.S. Power Squadron Boater Safety Course dates and locations..