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Rules · Florida

Alcohol and the equipment the law asks for

F.S. 327.35

Boating under the influence begins at a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 grams per 100 milliliters, and every person under 6 years of age must wear a flotation device on a vessel less than 26 feet in length while underway.

Last checked 21 Oct 2026Not legal advice.

The limit, and the step above it

Boating under the influence begins where driving does: 0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, or 0.08 or more grams per 210 liters of breath. From 0.15 the penalties are heavier, and they are heavier too where a person under the age of 18 is aboard.

That is the whole of the arithmetic in the section. A lower limit for a skipper under 21 is often mentioned alongside this rule; it is not in 327.35, and this page does not carry what the section does not say.

The flotation rule, exactly as narrow as it is

Every person under 6 years of age aboard wears a personal flotation device on a vessel less than 26 feet in length while that vessel is underway. Three conditions, all of which have to hold.

Underway is defined in the section: all times except when the vessel is anchored, moored, made fast to the shore, or aground. So the dinghy run back from the beach is underway; sitting at the mooring is not.

Everything else is a reference

For the rest of the gear, the section asks that equipment be carried, maintained and used under current Coast Guard requirements. There is no list with figures in it here, and this page does not invent one — nor does it carry the separate federal requirements, which were not readable when it was written.

What is aboard is this section. Whether an officer may stop the boat to look at it is another one.

Worth knowing

  • A person under 18 aboard raises it too. The heavier penalties apply from 0.15 blood or breath alcohol, and also where a person under the age of 18 is aboard the vessel.F.S. 327.35(4)
  • There is no threshold at 21 in this section. 327.35 sets none. The only other figures it carries are 0.15 and the person under 18 — a lower limit for a young skipper is not in the section read for this page.F.S. 327.35
  • The flotation rule is narrower than it is quoted. 327.50 asks that every person under 6 years of age aboard wear a personal flotation device on a vessel less than 26 feet in length while underway. It does not ask it of everyone aboard.F.S. 327.50
  • "Underway" is defined in the section. At all times except when a vessel is anchored, moored, made fast to the shore, or aground. Lying to a mooring with the children on deck is not underway; motoring out of the field is.F.S. 327.50
  • The rest of the equipment is by reference. Alongside the flotation rule, the section asks that equipment be carried, maintained and used under current Coast Guard requirements — a reference, with no figure of its own.F.S. 327.50(1)(a)
  • What has to be aboard and how it may be checked are two sections. 327.50 says what the vessel carries. Whether an officer may stop or board to look at it is written somewhere else.F.S. 327.50 Stops, boardings and equipment checks

Questions

What is the alcohol limit on a boat in Florida?

0.08 or more grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, or 0.08 or more grams per 210 liters of breath. From 0.15, or with a person under the age of 18 aboard, the penalties are heavier.

Is there a lower limit for a young skipper?

Not in this section. 327.35 names no threshold at 21; the figures it carries are 0.08, 0.15 and the person under 18 aboard.

Does everyone have to wear a lifejacket?

327.50 asks it of every person under 6 years of age, on a vessel less than 26 feet in length, while the vessel is underway. For the rest of the equipment the section refers to current Coast Guard requirements rather than listing figures.

Does the flotation rule apply at anchor?

The section defines underway as all times except when a vessel is anchored, moored, made fast to the shore, or aground.

Sources & checks

Written by buoya editorial from the sources above. Every figure was checked against its source on 21 Oct 2026. Found something wrong? Report a correction.