Boat Stability

WASHINGTON (CN) - Americans have been tipping scales, and now they may be tipping boats.

A boat's stability partly depends on the weight of its passengers, and the weight of an average American has increased by 20 pounds since the 1960s, when the Coast Guard last adjusted passenger "average weight," for stability calculations. So, the agency has proposed to change the regulation to reflect the new weight, which may decrease the number of people allowed on a boat at once.

The average weight in any group of men and women is about 185 pounds, according to the Coast Guard's interpretation of data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the Federal Aviation Administration. The Coast Guard calls the estimate "conservative" and plans to update it as the CDC releases new data on the average American's weight.

Click on the document icon on the front page for details and more new regulations.

Subscribe to Closing Arguments

Sign up for new weekly newsletter Closing Arguments to get the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and hot cases and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world.

Email *

Submit