North Dakota Senate Spends 20 Minutes Debating Regulation Of Water Skiing

Several sessions ago the North Dakota legislature added a new regulation to water skiing/water tubing behind motorized water craft. It was the requirement for a spotter to help the driver of the boat/jet ski ensure the safety of the skier/tuber.

But, several years later, there’s no evidence that this regulation has made water skiing/tubing any safer. All it’s really done is make the leisure time activity harder by requiring the involvement of more people. So the House passed a bill, HB1141, to remove the requirement for a spotter for watercraft sporting a rear-view mirror.

Dozens of other states have a similar law in place, but the paternalistic ninnies in the North Dakota state Senate couldn’t stand the idea of not being a bunch of party poopers.

Here’s the nearly 20 minutes of floor debate. Senator Phil Murphy’s histrionics about the dangers of water skiing are particularly noteworthy.

Remember that this is the same group of people who wouldn’t lift a ban on the sale of bottle rockets because you’ll shoot your eye out.