(1) Any act of misconduct, inattention to duty, negligence, or incompetence; any willful violation of any law or rule, including the rules of the road, applicable to a licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot; or any failure to exercise that care which a reasonable and prudent licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot would exercise under the same or similar circumstances may result in disciplinary action. Examples of acts by a licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot which constitute grounds for disciplinary action include, but are not limited to:

(a) Failure to make allowances for the foreseeable effects of wind, current, and tide.

(b) Failure to obtain or properly use information available to the pilot.

(c) Failure to navigate with caution in restricted visibility.

(d) Navigating in channels where the depth of water under the keel is less than the prescribed bottom clearance as recommended by the licensed state pilots of that port and approved by the board.

(e) Excessive speed.

(f) Having a license or certificate to practice piloting revoked, suspended, restricted, placed on probation, or in any way acted against, including, but not limited to, the relinquishing or depositing of the license or certificate in lieu of further disciplinary action, in anticipation of the filing of charges, or in lieu of prosecution, by the regulatory authority of another state, the Federal Government, a territory, or another country for an act which would constitute a ground for discipline if the act had occurred while piloting under authority of the Florida state pilot’s license or deputy pilot’s certificate.

(g) Making or filing, or inducing another person to make or file, a report which the pilot knows to be false or intentionally or negligently failing to file, or willfully impeding or obstructing the filing of, a report or record required by state law or by rule of the board or the department. Such reports or records include only those which are signed by the pilot in his or her capacity as a licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot.

(h) Being unable to perform the duties of a pilot with reasonable skill and safety by reason of illness or use of alcohol, drugs, narcotics, chemicals, or any other type of material or as a result of any mental or physical condition such as, but not limited to, poor eyesight or hearing, heart disease, or diabetes. In enforcing this paragraph, the department shall have authority, upon recommendation of the probable cause panel of the board, to compel a licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot to submit to a mental or physical examination by physicians designated by the department. The failure of a pilot to submit to such an examination when so directed constitutes an admission of the allegations against the pilot, unless the failure is due to circumstances beyond his or her control, consequent upon which an emergency suspension order may be entered by the department suspending the pilot’s license until he or she complies with the order for a compulsory mental or physical examination. A licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot affected under this paragraph must be afforded, at reasonable intervals, an opportunity to demonstrate that he or she can resume the competent practice of piloting with reasonable skill and safety.

(i) Practicing or offering to practice beyond the scope permitted by law or accepting and performing professional responsibilities that the pilot knows or has reason to know he or she is not competent to perform.

(j) Delegating professional responsibilities to a person when the pilot delegating such responsibilities knows or has reason to know that such person is not qualified by training, experience, or license to perform them.

(k) Engaging in any practice which does not meet acceptable standards of safe piloting.

(l) Failure to maintain a valid United States Coast Guard first-class unlimited pilot’s license covering the waters of the port in which the state pilot’s license was issued.

(m) Having a license to operate a motor vehicle revoked, suspended, or otherwise acted against by any jurisdiction, including its agencies or subdivisions, for operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The jurisdiction’s acceptance of a relinquishment of license, stipulation, consent order, plea of nolo contendere, penalty in any form, or other settlement offered in response to or in anticipation of the filing of charges related to the license to operate a motor vehicle shall be construed as action against the license.

(n) Being unable to perform piloting with reasonable skill and safety by reason of illness or use of alcohol, drugs, narcotics, or chemicals.

(2) When the board finds any person has committed any act set forth in subsection (1), it may enter an order imposing one or more of the following penalties:

(a) Refusing to certify to the department an application for license or certification.

(b) Revoking or suspending the license or certificate.

(c) Restricting the practice of the violator.

(d) Imposing an administrative fine not to exceed $5,000 for each count or separate offense.

(e) Issuing a reprimand.

(f) Placing the licensed state pilot or certificated deputy pilot on probation for such period of time and subject to such conditions as the board may specify, including, but not limited to, requiring the pilot to submit to treatment, submit to additional or remedial training, submit to reexamination, or undergo a complete physical examination.

(3) The board shall not reinstate the license or certificate of a state pilot or deputy pilot or cause a license or certificate to be issued to a person whom it has determined to be unqualified until the board is satisfied that such person has complied with all the terms and conditions set forth in the final order and that such person is capable of safely engaging in the practice of piloting.

(4) In any foreign vessel or foreign trading vessel movement that an individual holding a state pilot license or deputy pilot certificate is engaged in directing, whether movement of the vessel in or out of the port or movement in close proximity to a dock or any other movement undertaken in furtherance of his or her piloting duties, such individual is operating under the authority of his or her state license or certificate and is accountable to the board for his or her actions.

History.—s. 2, ch. 75-201; s. 3, ch. 76-168; s. 1, ch. 77-457; ss. 10, 16, ch. 78-140; s. 2, ch. 81-318; ss. 2, 3, ch. 84-185; ss. 6, 10, 11, ch. 86-280; s. 2, ch. 89-262; s. 5, ch. 90-54; s. 3, ch. 90-144; s. 4, ch. 91-429; s. 344, ch. 94-119; s. 891, ch. 95-148.