Title HNC, California Harb. & Nav. Code

(a) Before any broker’s license shall be issued or renewed by the department for any applicant, the applicant shall procure, file, and maintain with the department a good and sufficient bond in the amount of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) with a corporate surety duly licensed…

(a) A cash deposit given instead of the bond required by Section 730 shall be held by the department during the life of the license and for a period of four years after the expiration of the license. (b) If an action is commenced on the cash deposit of a licensed broker pursuant …

The department may deny an application or temporarily suspend or permanently revoke the license of a broker or a salesperson at any time if the licensee, while a broker or salesperson, in performing or attempting to perform any of the acts within the scope of this article, has co…

The department may deny an application or may suspend or revoke the license of a yacht broker or yacht salesperson who, within four years immediately preceding, has committed any of the following acts: (a) Has procured a license under this article for himself or herself or anothe…

(a) The division shall require an applicant for a yacht and ship broker or salesperson license, as those terms are defined in Section 701, to undergo a fingerprint-based state and national criminal history background check. (b) The division shall submit to the Department of Justi…

(a) The department shall not deny, suspend, or revoke a license granted under this article without a hearing, except the department may suspend a license without a hearing for failure of a broker to maintain a bond as specified in subdivision (d) of Section 730, or for failure of…

(a) Every broker shall maintain a definite place of business in this state as his principal office and may establish other branch offices throughout the state. Every broker maintaining more than one place of business within this state shall procure an additional license for every…

A licensed broker shall retain, for four years, copies of all listings, deposit receipts, canceled checks, trust records, and other documents executed or obtained by the broker in connection with a transaction for which a broker’s license is required. These records shall be made …

The department shall accept any electronic record or electronic or digital signature created, generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means on or after January 1, 2000. A “digital signature” means a signature that complies with the regulations adopted by …

(a) The division shall adopt regulations setting forth the fees to be charged and collected under this article. The fees shall be sufficient to reimburse the division for the reasonable costs of implementing this article. (b) A criminal records investigation fee shall be collecte…

(a) The proceedings and hearings under this article shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, including the right of judicial review as provided for in Section 11523 of the Government…

(a) Each violation of a section or subdivision of a section of this article, excepting Section 709, is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), provided that a violation committed willfully and with knowledge of the provisions of the violate…

Any person who violates any provision of this article, or any regulation adopted pursuant to this article, is liable for a penalty in an amount not less than one hundred dollars ($100) and not to exceed one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) for each separate violation. The p…

Any action taken in the enforcement of this article shall be commenced within three years of the department’s discovery of the facts constituting the grounds for that action. (Added by Stats. 1990, Ch. 561, Sec. 5.)

As used in this article, “for-hire vessel” includes any vessel propelled by machinery carrying more than three passengers for hire, except the following: (a) A sea plane on the water. (b) A watercraft specifically designed to operate on a permanently fixed course, the movement of…

No for-hire vessel, while carrying passengers for hire, shall be operated or navigated on the waters of this state except by a person who holds a valid license issued by the department pursuant to the provisions of this article. This requirement, however, shall not apply to perso…

An applicant for an operator’s license shall submit his written verified application to the department. The application shall be in such form and contain such information as the department requires. (Amended by Stats. 1966, 1st Ex. Sess., Ch. 61.)

Upon application for an operator’s license, the department shall require an examination of the applicant. The department shall adopt rules and regulations establishing the requirements for the examination which will demonstrate to the department the applicant’s competency in the …

The examination may include a test of the applicant’s knowledge of safety rules, an actual demonstration of his ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable control in operating a vessel, and his mental and physical fitness. The examination may also include an inspection of the fo…

Upon completion of the examination, the department may, with or without hearing, issue the operator’s license or issue it for the partial exercise only of the privilege sought, and may attach to the exercise of the rights granted by the license such terms and conditions as, in it…

An operator’s license issued by the department pursuant to the provisions of this article shall be valid for five years from the date of issuance or renewal and may be renewed every five years thereafter unless suspended or revoked pursuant to Section 768. The department may adop…

(a) The department may suspend or revoke any license issued pursuant to this article on a finding that the licensee has violated any of the provisions in this chapter, or has violated any of the regulations promulgated pursuant to carrying out the provisions of this article. The …

The department shall be responsible for administering the licensing of operators of for-hire vessels and for enforcing the provisions of this article, and in this connection may inspect for-hire vessels as defined in Section 760 on waters of this state other than those waters whi…

The division shall make rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this article, including adopting a schedule to establish reasonable fees that cover the division’s cost for exams, licensing, renewals, and other services provided by the division under this article. (Am…

It is unlawful and constitutes a misdemeanor for any person to violate, or to fail to comply with, any provision of this article after April 1, 1964. (Added by Stats. 1963, Ch. 1337.)

The authority and power granted to the department in this article shall not be construed to conflict with or diminish in any manner the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Commission over for-hire vessels or common carriers, as those terms are defined in the Public Utilities Cod…

The Legislature finds and declares that the charter boat industry operates in the public interest by providing jobs, nutritious food, education, recreation, and joy for Californians and their visitors. The appreciation of whales in their natural habitat has increased enormously i…

This article shall be known and may be cited as the Charter Boat Safety Act of 1983. (Added by Stats. 1983, Ch. 1049, Sec. 1. Effective September 26, 1983.)

As used in this article, the following definitions shall apply: (a) “For-hire vessel” means a for-hire vessel as defined in Section 4661 of the Public Utilities Code, irrespective of the number of passengers carried. (b) “Charter boat” means a for-hire vessel operating on navigab…

No person shall take or offer to take seven or more passengers on a charter boat unless the vessel is licensed by the United States Coast Guard. (Added by Stats. 1983, Ch. 1049, Sec. 1. Effective September 26, 1983.)

(a) No operator or charterer shall prevent any person from complying with, or direct any person to violate, any provision of this article, or direct the captain to get underway over the captain’s objection that the condition of the vessel, or the weather, or a combination of both…

The operator of a charter boat, or the operator’s employee or agent, shall require each passenger to don a life preserver under any of the following conditions: (a) When conditions of rough weather or heavy seas pose a threat to the vessel or its passengers. (b) When there is a c…

An operator, or the operator’s employee or agent, who directs the passengers to the life preservers while announcing that the passengers are required for their safety to don them shall be deemed to have complied with Section 773.5, if the operator, or the operator’s employee or a…

The operator, or the operator’s employee or agent, of a charter boat, prior to getting underway, shall orient each passenger concerning emergency procedures. A public announcement shall be made at the beginning of each trip to afford all passengers knowledge of the stowage locati…

(a) A charterer or operator who organizes charter boat trips shall inform each adult passenger as soon as practicable after the passenger contracts or pays for passage or boards the charter boat, whichever occurs first, that life jackets will be provided at the adult passenger’s …

(a) Every charterer and every charter boat operator shall include in all advertising for any charter trips in the coastal zone, as defined in Section 30103 of the Public Resources Code, the statement that for the public safety all personal flotation devices carried aboard these U…

No operator of a for-hire vessel shall leave or enter Morro Bay after being directed by the harbormaster of the harbor not to do so because of the condition of the weather, the sea, the vessel, or a combination thereof. (Added by Stats. 1983, Ch. 1049, Sec. 1. Effective September…

The operation of Section 655, 773.5, 773.7, or 774.1 or subdivision (b) of Section 773.8 shall be suspended if the Coast Guard or other appropriate federal agency has adopted and is enforcing a substantially similar regulation which conflicts with those sections. (Amended by Stat…

(a) Except as provided in Section 774, violation of any provision of this article is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than six months in the county jail, or a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both the fine and imprisonment. (b) Any oper…

(a) This article does not impose any mandatory duties upon any public entity to monitor sea or weather conditions or to warn or prevent vessels from leaving or entering a harbor entrance during unsafe conditions. (b) No public entity or employee thereof is liable for any injury w…

(a) (1) In addition to the fees imposed pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 9853 or Section 9860 of the Vehicle Code, there shall be a separate invasive mussel infestation prevention fee in an amount to be determined by the department as follows: (A) …

(a) All moneys deposited in the Harbors and Watercraft Revolving Fund pursuant to Section 675 shall be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the following purposes: (1) For reasonable costs incurred by the department associated with determining the prevention fee …

Any person or entity that manages any aspect of the water in a reservoir, as defined in Section 6004.5 of the Water Code, where recreational, boating, or fishing activities are permitted, shall be eligible to receive a grant under paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 676 f…

This article does not preempt a special district, city, county, or joint powers authority from adopting local regulations or ordinances related to the prevention and eradication of invasive aquatic species. (Added by Stats. 2012, Ch. 485, Sec. 2. (AB 2443) Effective January 1, 20…

For purposes of this article, “invasive mussel” has the same meaning as Section 2303 of the Fish and Game Code. (Added by Stats. 2025, Ch. 106, Sec. 10. (AB 149) Effective September 17, 2025.)

(a) On or before January 1, 2018, the division shall develop a vessel operator card to be issued pursuant to this article. (b) The division shall issue, or cause to be issued, a vessel operator card to a person who provides the division with proof that the person has passed a ves…