Wisconsin Watersports Coalition

Wake surfing Laws in the USA

We cannot make Wisconsin the most RESTRICTIVE state in the nation.

A comprehensive review of studies leads to enacting a 200' setback from shore rule.

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The current proposals from the anti wake surf groups are the most restrictive boating laws in the United States.

Current State Laws within the USA

Georgia July 1, 2023

- - Prohibits wakesurfing or wakeboarding within 200 feet shoreline
  - No wakeboarding or wakesurfing between sunset and sunrise

Tennessee 7/1/2022

Prohibited between Sunset and sunrise
Body of Water must be 50 ac or more
Prohibited on a portion of a body of water with a width - from shoreline to shoreline - of less that 400'
Prohibited within 200' of a shoreline , dock or pier
Prohibits the use of a motorboat that has a propulsions system extending beyond the boats boarding or swim platform

Alabama - bill is introduced not passed yet

Prohibited between sunrise and sunset
Prohibited on any portion of the water where width is less than 400'
Prohibited within 200' from any shoreline, dock or pier.

South Carolina in effect 6/14/2023

Wake surf in excess of idle speed within 200' of a moored vessel, wharf, dock, bulkhead, pier, or person in the water

Virginia

Prohibits a person within 200 feet of a dock, pier, boathouse, boat ramp, shoreline, or other person in the water from operating a vessel on any inland lake that is more than 500 feet above sea level and of 20,000 acres or more in size, and wholly located within the Commonwealth (Smith Mountain Lake), while accompanied by a person or persons engaged in wake surfing

Vermont

Vermont now Requires wake surfing to take place in designated zones that are at least 500 feet from shore, 200 feet wide, and more than 20 feet deep. The state also requires boats to be decontaminated when moving between waters
Regulates wakesports and wakeboats on certain lakes in Vermont, confining them to a “wakesport zone” of 50 contiguous acre

Maine- August 9, 2024

Restricted to 300' from shoreline
Requires a Water depth of greater than 15'

New Hampshire

Restricted 150' from shore
Current legislation is focused at extending it to either 200' or 300'
Prohibited between sunset and sunrise
Lakes must be 50 ac or larger
Prohibits wakesurfing behind a vessel propulsion system that extends beyond the swim platform

Minnesota

Requires boaters to attend an education class and receive a boater education card before engaging in wake sports

Lakes vs Reservoirs

Some argue the southern states have reservoirs that have different shore dynamics. A shoreline, whether created by a dam or nature, is the same. Its resistance to erosion is a function of the soil type, and vegetation coverage.

To imply that southern states do not have the same concerns like shoreline erosion is not accurate. It could be argued that since many of the lakes are reservoirs in the southern states and were created within the last 100 years, the shoreline would be less dynamically stable. These lakes or reservoirs can experience lake levels varying up to 10 feet per year, also leading to shoreline erosion concerns.

In fact, the EPA did a National Lake Assessment(NLA) Survey between lakes and reservoirs. Yet these states decided that 200 feet is acceptable. Of the total 111,119 lakes assessed, approximately 52% (58,700) were natural and 48% (53,119) were manmade. Reservoirs occur throughout the United States, however, most natural lakes are concentrated in five ecoregions: the Upper Midwest, Northern Appalachians, Temperate Plains, Coastal Plains, and the Western Mountains. The NLA assessed both lakes and reservoirs using the same set of protocols and analytical procedures. The assessment showed that a higher percentage of reservoirs were in the most disturbed category compared to lakes for these four indicators: zooplankton, total phosphorus, lakeshore disturbance and chlorophyll. And yet the states that have reservoirs and wake boat laws chose to enact 200 ft. as the distance from the shoreline.

A question that is never addressed by these groups is why Minnesota and Michigan, both states that are almost identical to Wisconsin in lake structure, quantity and size, haven't enacted ordinances yet. Minnesota, where many of these studies originated, currently have an educational class that ends in a certification for water sports.