New state BUI law takes effect today

As the feds call on states to lower the threshold for drunk driving, Georgia is getting tougher on those who boat under the influence.

The new law, which takes effect today, lowers the blood-alcohol level for boat operators to be considered legally drunk from .10 to .08, the same as drivers. The law also applies to hunters.

It’s named for two brothers, Jake and Griffin Prince, killed on Lake Lanier by an alleged drunk boater last summer.

Their parents were on hand as Gov. Nathan Deal recently signed the legislation that created it.

“If you’re too drunk to drive a car, you’re too drunk to drive a boat,” says Deal.

The Kyle Glover Boat Education law also takes effect today which requires anyone under the age of 13 to wear a life vest in a moving boat.

Glover, the step-son of R&B singer Usher, was also killed on Lake Lanier last summer when a family friend riding on a jet ski ran over the boy who was being pulled on an inner tube.

Another part of the law that requires boater education classes for those born since 1998 takes effect next year.

“We’re making certain that Georgia’s waterways are a place where people can come and have a good time with their families and have great memories to share in the future,” says Deal.

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