Chapter 4: The Legal Requirements of Boating
Enforcement (ORC 1547.63)

Within the area of their jurisdiction, every sheriff, deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, municipal police officer, township police constable, wildlife officer, park or conservancy district officer, or other law enforcement officer may enforce the Ohio watercraft law and has the authority to stop, inspect, and board any recreational vessel.

Any authorized law enforcement officer has the authority to stop and board boats in order to check for compliance with federal and state laws.

Firearm Restrictions (ORC 1547.69)

Except for persons legally engaged in hunting, no person shall:

• Discharge a firearm while in or on a vessel.
• Transport or have a loaded firearm in a vessel in such a manner that the firearm is accessible to the operator or any passenger.

No person shall transport or have a firearm in a vessel, unless:

• The firearm is unloaded and carried in a closed package, box, or case or ...
• The firearm is in plain sight with the action open or the weapon stripped.

This section does not apply to the possession or discharge of a U.S. Coast Guard–approved distress signaling device (VDS) when the device is possessed or used for the purpose of giving a distress signal. Such signaling devices shall only be loaded immediately prior to discharging a legal signal of distress.

No person shall operate or permit operation of a vessel in violation of this section.

Ohio’s Concealed Carry Law (ORC 2923.12)

• Ohio’s Concealed Carry Law is interpreted and administered by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office (see www.ag.state.oh.us).
• Handguns are restricted in Canada (see www.cfc-cafc.gc.ca). Know the law before you leave U.S. waters.