(1) The commission will delegate to the director of the Washington state parks and recreation commission or designee the authority to establish minimum standards for a boating safety education program that are consistent with the education standards set by NASBLA and which shall include training on preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species. The commission shall approve and provide accreditation to boating safety education courses operated by volunteers, or commercial or nonprofit organizations, including, but not limited to, courses given by the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary and the United States Power Squadrons. The commission shall strive to make its boating education course materials and testing opportunities available to culturally and linguistically diverse people who are English learners, and to facilitate making the boating education card available to such persons. The boating safety education program shall provide for the accreditation of a boating safety course or courses by boating educators. The commission shall:

(a) Follow the NASBLA process for course review and approval and shall review any course that is proposed by any private or public entity that desires to teach a course to the public for the purposes of obtaining a boater education card. The commission will make available to any interested prospective accredited boating safety course provider, forms in paper and electronic form, to be used to apply to the commission to become an accredited boating safety course provider. In order to be accredited by the commission, an accredited boating safety course provider that wants to issue a boater education card must issue only the commission's boater education card.

(b) Follow the NASBLA process for courses to be reviewed and reapproved if the provider wishes to continue the use of the course.

(c) Use the NASBLA testing standards for exam questions.

(d) Create a question pool that meets the NASBLA examination question standards to cover Washington state boating laws and regulations and make this part of any course to enable accredited boating safety course providers to meet NASBLA standards.

(e) Consider and evaluate public agency and commercial opportunities to assist in program administration with the intent to keep administrative costs to a minimum.

(2) Any boater twelve years of age or older who completes a boating safety course that has met commission standards will be eligible to receive a boater education card upon application for such card and payment of appropriate fees. The commission will accept as proof of accomplishment or course completion:

(a) A copy of an original certificate from any course taken prior to July 1, 2005, provided that such course meets the NASBLA standards for Washington in effect at the time the course was taken.

(b) A letter from an accredited course provider that certifies that the named individual has taken and passed a boating safety course from this provider that met the acceptable course standards as of the date the course was given.