Section 67. Public vessel equipment

1.  Buoyant  apparatus. Every public
  vessel of over fifty tons burden, navigating more  than  one  mile  from
  shore,  shall  carry  in  addition  to  other equipment required by this
  section, sufficient buoyant apparatus for not less than twenty per  cent
  of  all  persons on board. Buoyant apparatus shall mean and include life
  rafts, or life floats, of a type  approved  by  the  commissioner.  Such
  apparatus  shall be equipped with oars or paddles and other equipment as
  specified by the inspector. All buoyant apparatus  shall  be  stowed  in
  such a manner that it is easily accessible and capable of being launched
  into the waters in case of need.
    2.  Personal  flotation  devices.  Every  public vessel engaged in the
  transportation of passengers shall have on  board  a  wearable  personal
  flotation  device  for  each passenger the vessel is certified to carry,
  and one additional wearable personal flotation device for each member of
  the crew. The personal flotation devices shall be of a type approved  by
  the United States coast guard for use on vessels carrying passengers for
  hire.  The  personal flotation devices shall be in serviceable condition
  and kept in readily  accessible  places,  having  the  approval  of  the
  inspector,  for  immediate use in case of emergency. The location of the
  personal  flotation  devices  shall  be  indicated  by  legible  printed
  notices.  It  shall be the duty of the inspector to ascertain that every
  personal flotation device is as herein required.
    3. Ventilation. The inspector shall require that machinery  and  other
  enclosed  spaces be adequately ventilated by means of free or forced air
  ventilation. The inspector shall require that all installed  fuel  tanks
  be properly vented.
    4.  Portable  fire  extinguishers.  The  inspector  shall require that
  public vessels carry  such  portable  fire  extinguishers  as  he  deems
  necessary  and  to  specify their type, size and location on the vessel,
  dependent upon the type of vessel, the  number  of  passengers  and  the
  amount and character of freight carried and other fire hazards.
    5. Fixed fire extinguishing systems. Fixed fire extinguishing systems,
  hereinafter  termed "fixed systems", are considered to be total flooding
  systems using carbon dioxide  as  the  extinguishing  agent  and  having
  components   fixed   in   position.  The  inspector  shall  require  the
  installation of a fixed system on every passenger carrying public vessel
  which has enclosed engine and fuel tank compartments.
    6. Communications and  navigational  equipment.  Every  public  vessel
  certified  to  carry  more  than  ten  passengers shall be equipped with
  either a very high frequency marine radio or operational cellular  phone
  which, considering the location of the vessel's operations, the vessel's
  range, the availability of persons or services to receive and respond to
  the  vessel's transmissions when the vessel is in use and other relevant
  factors the inspector, in his or her  discretion,  determines  to  be  a
  reliable  means  for  such  vessel  to  call  for  any  necessary aid or
  assistance. Every public vessel certified to carry more than  sixty-five
  passengers shall also be equipped with functional radar.
    7.  Marking  of equipment. All equipment, unless otherwise directed by
  the inspector, shall be legibly marked with  the  name  or  registration
  number of the public vessel on which it is carried.
    8. The commissioner is hereby authorized to make rules and regulations
  pertaining  to  equipment  on  public vessels. In framing such rules and
  regulations the commissioner shall, as far as practicable,  be  governed
  by the rules and regulations of the United States coast guard prescribed
  for the regulation of commercial vessels.