For those in eastern Louisiana cities -- Shreveport -- Bossier City -- that are on the Red River, the U.S.Coast Guard regulations kick in and those are truly "Riverboats." A captain and general officer staff is mandatory with regular life boat drills and other USCG regular testing. In south Louisiana, the Ameila Belle is located off the Mississippi River. The boats engines are required to be kept running with a USCG approved Captain at the helm. Used to be at Lake Charles, La., which is off the Gulf Of Mexico and smaller relief rivers of the Mississippi, the regulation was that these boats had to set sail -- leaving the dock and going out into the lake that surrounds Lake Charles. So, a customer was technically on a riverboat "at sea for about 4 hours" Of course, a ticket was required to be a passenger. You can go back in time as see how different states went about regulating early "riverboat gaming."