The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators implemented a process of voluntary third-party conformity assessment for on-water boating skill programs to verify a course meets American National Standards for Power, Sail, and Human-Propelled. Successful completion includes the award of a uniquely-numbered “Verified Course” mark indicating “The content of this course conforms to the American National Standard for on-water skills as verified through an independent third-party assessment process.”
Recognized by the American National Standards Institute as American National Standards, the On-Water Power, On-Water Sailing, and On-Water Human-Propelled standards identify fundamental skills that entry level recreational boat operators should be able to demonstrate after receiving instruction. The standards are freely available for voluntary application by organizations providing recreational boating instructional programs. More information about these standards can be found at www.abycinc.org or www.usnows.org.
Parties interested in submitting materials for this verification process should review the following:
1. On-Water Skills Course Verification Process (fillable form)
2. Fee Schedule for Skills Course Verification Review
3. Verified Course Application
Parties should also review the following documents based on the skills course they wish to submit:
4. American National Standard - On-Water Recreational Boating Skills Standard – Power
- EDU-1 On-Water Power Standard - A free download of the POWER Standard is available from ABYC’s OnLine Store at: www.abycinc.org.
5. American National Standard – On-Water Recreational Boating Skills Standard – Human-Propelled
- EDU-2 Skills Based Human Propelled Boat Standard - A free download of the POWER Standard is available from ABYC’s OnLine Store at: www.abycinc.org.
6. American National Standard – On-Water Skills – Sail
- EDU-3 Skills Based Sailing Boat Standard - A free download of the SAIL Standard is available from ABYC's Online Store at: www.abycinc.org.