Western Pennsylvania Coast Guard Auxiliary gives stickers to safe boats
MUDDY CREEK TWP — An orange sticker in the shape of an inverted curved triangle on the back of a vessel means the boat it is attached to has passed an inspection by a member of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary in 2026.
The sticker does not have legal binding, but it represents to other vessels, and law enforcement agencies, the boat is safe.
Jim Meyer, financial officer for the Western Pennsylvania division of the auxiliary, is one of the administers of vessel inspections in the area. He performs this duty at bodies of water including Lake Arthur at Moraine State Park.
He said the checklist the auxiliary uses helps boaters make sure they have everything they need on their vessel to ensure safety and offers some recommendations.
“It goes down along the line of what you need to be safe as far as boating,” Meyer said. “It conforms with the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and we have to make sure it conforms with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat (Commission).”
Meyer said he normally performs vessel inspections at parks like Moraine, but doesn’t schedule his “office hours.” He just asks people with boats if they would like him to check their vessel for the opportunity to have the certification sticker, which, he said, could stave off law enforcement, such as the Fish and Boat Commission, on the water.
The vessel inspection is free, and, Meyer said, even when a boat doesn’t pass inspection, its owner or operator faces no negative consequences.
“What we do is we ask the person, ‘Do you want an inspection.’ If they do, then this is the checklist we go through,” he said.
The first thing a vessel inspector looks for when going through the checklist is the boater registration number and hull identification number. The latter is on the outside of the boat and has to match the number the boat’s owner has on their boating license.
“The registration number makes sure they’re the owner or they’re the operator,” Meyer said, “and then the other thing is the hull identification number — most of them are on the starboard side of the stern.”
Meyer demonstrated a vessel check with a passerby at Moraine State Park on Aug. 17.
A boat also must have enough flotation devices for everyone on board while on the water, and they must be approved by the U.S. Coast Guard — an approved flotation device has this information stenciled on them, according to Meyer. The boat lights have to work. The operator needs to carry a sound-producing device, like a whistle. They have to have a visual distress device, like a flashlight. The navigation lights need to work. The battery terminals need to be covered, and the electric cutoff switch must work.
Meyer performs all of his checks on land, so he simply looks for these items on board and he doesn’t need a boat owner to turn on their engine just to demonstrate something like the cutoff switch. Boats that have indoor enclosures also need ventilation that works, Meyer said, but he noted a majority of the boats that take on Lake Arthur are outboards with no indoor sections.
A vessel must also have an accessible fire extinguisher on board that is under 12 years old. Meyer said many boat owners have a fire extinguisher with them, but they may not be within the allowable range of age.
“Fire extinguishers, they can’t be over 12 years old, and they have to show charge,” he said.
The checklist also covers recommendations by the U.S. Coast Guard. These recommendations include a boat having a marine radio, a dewatering device, a mount for the fire extinguisher, anchor and anchor lines, and a first-aid kit.
According to Meyer, these recommendations are noted on the checklist, even though they are not necessary for a boater to get the sticker.
“Do you have a radio — is it a good idea to have it? Probably. Doe she need one? no,” Meyer said. “I ask, ‘Did you have a boater safety course?’ Does he need it? No. But you put it down anyhow.”
Meyer added coastal waters, including Lake Erie, have different requirements for boats operators under the law.
“If you go to Erie or coastal waters, they have to have flares. It’s anything that’s 2 miles … from land,” he said. “If it’s 2 miles across and you’re past that line, then you have to have flares.”
Meyer said he usually ends his inspections by looking at the general condition of the boat, before giving the person a sticker if they comply with all the Coast Guard’s requirements. He also has registration stickers for nonmotorized vessels on hand, like kayaks, canoes and paddleboards.
Meyer said the Coast Guard Auxiliary group is open for anyone to join and he even had some luck recruiting members at the Moraine State Park Regatta in early-August.
The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary meets at 7 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month at Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport, 473 Airport Road in Penn Township. Meyer said anyone can attend.
