As of Jan. 1, any vessel documented by the U.S. Coast Guard must be registered with Wildlife and Parks.

A registration certificate and decals will be issued to the boat owner, and the decals must be applied to the forward half of both sides of the vessel.

The certificate must be kept on the vessel, available for inspection, whenever the boat is in operation or moored on Kansas water. Prior to this change, documented vessels were not required to be registered with the state agency.

Another new requirement is mandatory use of a skier-down flag.

Vessels towing anyone on water skis or similar devices must carry a bright orange or red flag and display it whenever a towed person is in the water, either preparing to be towed or awaiting pick-up by the towing vessel.

The flag should be a minimum of 12 inches square and must be visible from all directions.