N.Y. NAV Law § 2 — New York Code / Act NAV / Article 1 / Section 2
Definitions
Status: in_force

§ 2. Definitions. The following terms when used in this chapter unless\notherwise expressly stated, or unless the context of the language or\nsubject matter indicates a different meaning or application was\nintended, shall be deemed to mean and include: 1. "Office" shall mean\nthe state office of parks, recreation and historic preservation.\n  2. "Commissioner" shall mean the commissioner of parks, recreation and\nhistoric preservation, unless otherwise indicated, except that for\npurposes of the administration of articles three and eleven of this\nchapter within the sixth park region, the boundaries of which are\ndescribed in subdivision six of section 7.01 of the parks, recreation\nand historic preservation law, "commissioner" shall mean the\ncommissioner of environmental conservation.\n  4. "Navigable waters of the state" shall mean all lakes, rivers,\nstreams and waters within the boundaries of the state and not privately\nowned, which are navigable in fact or upon which vessels are operated,\nexcept all tidewaters bordering on and lying within the boundaries of\nNassau and Suffolk counties.\n  5. "Navigable in fact" shall mean navigable in its natural or\nunimproved condition, affording a channel for useful commerce of a\nsubstantial and permanent character conducted in the customary mode of\ntrade and travel on water. A theoretical or potential navigability, or\none that is temporary, precarious and unprofitable is not sufficient,\nbut to be navigable in fact a lake or stream must have practical\nusefulness to the public as a highway for transportation.\n  6. "Vessel" shall mean any floating craft and all vessels shall belong\nto one of the following classes:\n  (a) "Public Vessel" shall mean and include every vessel which is\npropelled in whole or in part by mechanical power and is used or\noperated for commercial purposes on the navigable waters of the state;\nthat is either carrying passengers, carrying freight, towing, or for any\nother use; for which a compensation is received, either directly or\nwhere provided as an accommodation, advantage, facility or privilege at\nany place of public accommodation, resort or amusement.\n  (b) "Residential vessel" shall mean and include every vessel which is\nused primarily as a residence.\n  (c) "Pleasure vessel" shall mean and include every vessel not within\nthe classification of public vessel or residential vessel. However, the\nprovisions of this chapter shall not apply to rowboats, canoes and\nkayaks except as otherwise expressly provided.\n  (d) The term "vessel" as used in this chapter shall not include a crew\nracing shell. "Crew racing shell" shall mean any shell, gig, barge or\nother boat designed primarily for practice or racing, propelled by oars\nor sweeps, in the sport of crew or scull racing conducted by a private\nor public educational institution, school, academy, college, university\nor association of any of the preceding, or by an amateur sports club or\nassociation or by the United States or International Olympics Committee\nand shall not include canoes, rowboats or lifeboats.\n  The boat or launch accompanying a crew racing shell shall have\nsufficient safety devices to aid members of the crew should the need\narise.\n  7. "Owner" shall mean the person actually holding title to a vessel,\nexcept a public vessel chartered unmanned for a period of more than\nthirty consecutive days, in which case "owner" shall include the person\nchartering the vessel.\n  8. "Person" shall mean an individual, partnership, corporation or\nassociation.\n  9. "Master" shall include every individual having for the time the\ncharge, control or direction of a vessel.\n  10. "Pilot" shall mean an individual licensed to take charge of the\ncourse of a vessel through or upon specific waters.\n  11. "Engineer" shall mean an individual licensed to operate a vessel's\nmain engines and auxiliaries.\n  12. "Joint pilot and engineer" shall mean an individual licensed to\nact as both pilot and engineer for a public vessel which in the judgment\nof the inspector can be safely navigated by one individual.\n  13. "Operator" shall mean an individual who operates or navigates a\npleasure vessel.\n  14. "License" shall mean a certificate furnished by the inspector.\n  15. "Inspector" shall mean the individual, or individuals, provided\nfor in article two, section twelve, of this chapter.\n  16. "Under way" shall mean that the vessel is not at anchor, or made\nfast to the shore, or aground.\n  17. "Visibility" as applied to lights shall mean discernibility on a\ndark night with a clear atmosphere.\n  18. "Starboard" shall mean the right hand side, facing the bow of the\nvessel.\n  19. "Port" shall mean the left hand side, facing the bow of the\nvessel.\n  20. "Wharf" shall mean and include any structure built or maintained\nfor the purpose of providing a berthing place for vessels.\n  21. "Dock" shall mean a wharf, or portion of a wharf, extending along\nthe shore line and generally connected with the uplands throughout its\nlength.\n  22. "Pier" shall mean a wharf or portion of a wharf extending from the\nshore line with water on both sides.\n  23. "Jetty" shall mean a structure located within the shore lines of a\nbody of water for the purpose of controlling currents usually to prevent\nfilling in a channel.\n  24. "Breakwater" shall mean a structure located within the shore line\nof a body of water for the purpose of providing protection from wind and\nwave action.\n  25. "Undocumented vessel" shall mean any vessel which is not required\nto have, and does not have, a valid marine document issued by the\nfederal bureau of customs.\n  26. "Open construction" shall mean that a vessel is so constructed as\nto be void of any decking or enclosure which inhibits the continuous and\nfree circulation of air within the vessel when under way.\n  27. "Aids to Navigation" shall mean buoys, beacons or other fixed\nobjects in the water which are used to mark obstructions to navigation\nor to direct navigation through safe channels.\n  28. "Floating Objects" shall mean any anchored marker or platform\nfloating on the surface of the water other than aids to navigation and\nshall include but not be limited to, bathing beach markers, speed zone\nmarkers, information markers, swimming or diving floats, mooring buoys,\nfishing buoys, and ski jumps.\n  29. "Gray water" shall mean waste water generated by water using\nfixtures other than toilets; including but not limited to baths, sinks\nand laundry facilities used on residential vessels.\n  30. "Personal watercraft" shall mean a vessel which uses an inboard\nmotor powering a water jet pump as its primary source of motive power\nand which is designed to be operated by a person sitting, standing, or\nkneeling on, or being towed behind the vessel rather than in the\nconventional manner of sitting or standing inside the vessel.\n  30-a. "Personal flotation device" shall mean a wearable flotation\ndevice, classified and approved by the United States Coast Guard which\nis in such a condition that it is fit for its intended purpose, bears a\nlegibly marked United States Coast Guard approval number and is of an\nappropriate size for the person who intends to use it.\n  31. "Specialty prop-craft" shall mean a vessel which is powered by an\noutboard motor or a propeller driven motor and which is designed to be\noperated by a person sitting, standing or kneeling on or being towed\nbehind the vessel rather than in the conventional manner of sitting or\nstanding inside the vessel.\n  32. "Effective muffler" or "underwater exhaust system" shall mean a\nsound suppression device or system designed and installed to abate the\nsound of exhaust gases emitted from an internal combustion engine and\nwhich prevents excessive or unusual noise, as set forth in section\nforty-four of this chapter.\n  33. "Abandoned historic shipwreck" shall mean wrecks situated on or\nunder lands owned by the state, in which the state holds title pursuant\nto the Abandoned Shipwrecks Act of 1987 (43 U.S.C. 2101) or which, by\nreason of their antiquity, history, architecture, archaeology or\ncultural value, have state or national importance and are eligible for\ninclusion on the state register of historic places, and which have been\nabandoned by the owner of record. The term shall include the wreck, its\ncargo and contents and the situs.\n  34. "Wreck" shall mean any wrecked property, other than an abandoned\nhistoric shipwreck.\n