The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office will be launching a series of classes in the coming months to help local residents obtain the mandatory Oregon boaters education card.

Oregon law requires the operator of any powerboat with an engine larger than 10 horsepower to pass a test on basic boating skills and to carry his or her certification card when operating a powerboat on Oregon waters. Children 12 to 15 years old must obtain a boater education card before operating any size powerboat, while those younger than 12 are prohibited from operating one.

The classes offered through the Sheriff’s Office are free, but it costs $10 to obtain the card from the Oregon State Marine Board. Cards are good for a lifetime. Boaters caught operating a powerboat without a card are subject to a ticket of up to $94.

Cpl. Neil Mackey from the Sheriff’s Office said the classes primarily cover the “rules of the road” as they relate to boating, some safety instruction and the law covering boating under the influence of alcohol.

People with extensive boating experience may be able to bypass the class, Mackey said, and can obtain their certification card by taking an online test available through OSMB’s Web site.

Mackey said the test includes questions that Central Oregon boaters may be unfamiliar with, such as navigation in coastal waterways. Boaters who don’t want to take a class should consult the Boat Oregon guidebook before taking the test. The guidebook is available at no charge from the Sheriff’s Office.

“If people study that, and they can pass the practice test in the back of that, they’re probably not going to have any problems,” said Mackey. “But the idea behind having a class with some live bodies is you have someone you can ask questions of.”

The class includes a one-hour video, followed by a question-and-answer period and a 75-question multiple choice test. Boaters must score at least 70 percent on the test to receive a boaters card.

Mackey said it appears nearly all boat operators in Oregon hold a valid boater education card. The law first went into effect in 2003, when all boaters younger than 30 were required to obtain a card. The age requirement was expanded every year since then, until 2009, when all boaters were required to obtain a card.

“Since we started phasing it in, I think every year but one there’s been a decline in the motorized accident rate in Oregon. I think that’s primarily because people were put in a situation where they had to get some education,” Mackey said.

“Granted, there’s still idiots out there — you can’t legislate intelligence — but I think people for the most part are safer on the water, and that’s led to the decline.”

Boater education classes

All courses will be held at the Sheriff’s Office in Bend, on the following dates:

March 12

April 14

May 8

May 21

June 21

July 20

Aug. 20

Sept. 20

Oct. 21

All courses, except the one on May 8, will be from 6 to 9 p.m.; the May 8 course will run from 9 a.m. until noon. For more information, go to www .boatoregon.com or contact the Sheriff’s Office at 541-388-6503 or 541-550-4856.