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Read. Follow. Verify.Utah enacts the New Motorboat Distributor Act to regulate dealer agreements, warranty reimbursements, and dealership terminations
Last action · March 6, 2026: Senate/ filedSponsors: Chris Wilson and 1 other
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What This Bill Proposed
This bill establishes comprehensive state regulations for motorboat distributors and dealerships, prohibiting unfair business practices, setting strict standards for franchise terminations and successions, and mandating full distributor reimbursement for warranty and recall work starting May 6, 2026.
Motorboat dealerships gain enforceable protections regarding inventory repurchase upon contract termination, mandatory compensation for diagnostic and testing labor, and administrative review rights before a manufacturer can establish a competing dealership within a 50-mile radius.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
motorboat distributors
Distributors face new restrictions on dealership terminations, mandatory warranty and inventory repurchase obligations, and administrative oversight by the Department of Commerce.
motorboat dealerships
Dealerships gain protected franchise rights, guaranteed retail-rate compensation for warranty work, mandatory inventory repurchase upon agreement termination, and administrative recourse against unfair distributor practices.
Department of Commerce
The department is granted the authority to administer registrations, conduct adjudicative proceedings, issue cease-and-desist orders, and assess administrative fines up to $1,000 per day.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a manufacturer force a dealership to take inventory it did not order?
What happens if a distributor terminates a dealership agreement?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · passed the Senate · in the House.
Procedural history
36 actions- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ filed
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ received from House
- Mar 6, 2026HouseHouse/ to Senate
- Mar 6, 2026HouseHouse/ strike enacting clause
- Feb 24, 2026HouseIntroducedHouse/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Feb 24, 2026HouseHouse/ received from Senate
Show 30 earlier actions
- Feb 24, 2026SenateSenate/ to House
- Feb 24, 2026SenateFloorSenate/ passed 3rd reading
- Feb 24, 2026SenateSenate/ 3rd reading
- Feb 24, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for SB0157S02
- Feb 24, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for SB0157S02
- Feb 23, 2026SenateFloorSenate/ passed 2nd reading
- Feb 23, 2026SenateSenate/ substituted
- Feb 23, 2026SenateSenate/ uncircled
- Feb 20, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for SB0157S02
- Feb 20, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for SB0157S02
- Feb 20, 2026SenateSenate/ circled
- Feb 20, 2026SenateSenate/ 2nd reading
- Feb 4, 2026SenateSenate/ placed on 2nd Reading Calendar
- Feb 4, 2026SenateSenate/ comm rpt/ substituted
- Feb 4, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for SB0157S01
- Feb 4, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for SB0157S01
- Feb 3, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
- Feb 3, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Substitute Recommendation
- Feb 2, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for SB0157S01
- Feb 2, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for SB0157S01
- Jan 26, 2026SenateSenate/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst
- Jan 23, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for SB0157
- Jan 22, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for SB0157
- Jan 21, 2026SenateCommitteeSenate/ to standing committee
- Jan 20, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Jan 20, 2026SenateSenate/ received bill from Legislative Research
- Jan 19, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for SB0157
- Jan 19, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for SB0157
- Jan 19, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselNumbered Bill Publicly Distributed
- Jan 19, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselBill Numbered but not Distributed
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Replacement of 2021 Motorboat Agreements Act
The bill explicitly repeals the previous Motorboat Agreements Act enacted in 2021 (Chapters 13-58) and replaces it with a more comprehensive regulatory framework under Chapter 13-14c.
Connected Entities
Sources
le.utah.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz15Current news / social attention level
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