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CALIFORNIA BILL TO LIMIT SKATE PARK LIABILITY 

The main reason there are so few half-pipe skate parks is liability.

California has deemed X-game type skate parks to be a hazardous activity. Sound bad but it's not.  This significantly reduces the liability faced by Municipalities which has significantly increased the (re-)growth of these Parks.    If you get a chance to talk with Elected or Gov Officials mention the concept.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kalinda Mathis" <kmathis@ec.rr.com>
To: "Bob Brubaker" 
Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2002 9:16 AM
Subject: RE: 'Public policy' impediments to fitness


Attached is the CA limited liability bill I mentioned in our last conversation...hope you are well...

Kalinda Mathis
International Inline Skating Association
910.762.7004
www.iisa.org




BILL TEXT

CHAPTER   573
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   SEPTEMBER 30, 1997
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   SEPTEMBER 29, 1997
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   SEPTEMBER 11, 1997
PASSED THE SENATE   SEPTEMBER 4, 1997
AMENDED IN SENATE   AUGUST 29, 1997
AMENDED IN SENATE   JULY 22, 1997

INTRODUCED BY  Assembly Members Morrow, Mazzoni, and Strom-Martin
   (Coauthor: Senator Thompson)

                        FEBRUARY 28, 1997

   An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 115800 of the Health and
Safety Code, relating to liability.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1296, Morrow.  Liability.
   Existing law provides that neither public entities nor public employees are liable to any person who participates in a hazardous recreational activity.  Existing law defines "hazardous recreational activities" for these purposes to include various activities.    This bill would provide that skateboarding at a public skateboard park is a hazardous recreational activity for purposes of those provisions if the person skateboarding is 14 years of age or older, the skateboarding activity was stunt, trick, or luge skateboarding, and the skateboard park is on public property, as specified.  The bill would require appropriate local public agencies to maintain a record of all known or reported injuries incurred by skateboarders in a public skateboard park or facility, and other information regarding those incidents, as specified, and would require copies of these records to be filed with the Judicial Council annually, beginning in 1999.  By imposing additional duties on local public agencies, the bill would create a state-mandated local program.  The bill would require the Judicial Council to submit a report to the
Legislature regarding this information on or before March 31, 2000, as specified.    The bill would provide for the repeal of these provisions on January 1, 2003.  The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state.  Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement, including the creation of a State Mandates Claims Fund to pay the costs of mandates that do not exceed $1,000,000 statewide and other procedures for claims whose statewide costs exceed $1,000,000.  This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 115800 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
   115800.  
   (a) No operator of a skateboard park shall permit any person to ride a skateboard therein, unless that person is wearing a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads.  
   (b) With respect to any facility, owned or operated by a local  public agency, that is designed and maintained for the purpose of recreational skateboard use, and that is not supervised on a regular basis, the requirements of subdivision (a) may be satisfied by compliance with the following:

   (1) Adoption by the local public agency of an ordinance requiring any person riding a skateboard at the facility to wear a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads.
   (2) The posting of signs at the facility affording reasonable notice that any person riding a skateboard in the facility must wear a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads, and that any person failing to do so will be subject to citation under the ordinance required by paragraph (1).
   (c) "Local public agency" for purposes of this section includes, but is not limited to, a city, county, or city and county. 
   (d) (1) Skateboarding at any facility or park owned or operated by a public entity as a public skateboard park, as provided in paragraph (3), shall be deemed a hazardous recreational activity within the meaning of Section 831.7 of the Government Code if all of the following conditions are met:
   (A) The person skateboarding is 14 years of age or older.
   (B) The skateboarding activity that caused the injury was stunt, trick, or luge skateboarding.
   (C) The skateboard park is on public property that complies with subdivision (a) or (b).
   (2) In addition to the provisions of subdivision (c) of Section 831.7 of the Government Code, nothing in this section is intended to limit the liability of a public entity with respect to any other duty imposed pursuant to existing law, including the duty to protect against dangerous conditions of public property pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 830) of Part 2 of Division 3.6 of Title 1 of the Government Code.
   (3) For public skateboard parks that were constructed on or before January 1, 1998, this subdivision shall apply to hazardous recreational activity injuries incurred on or after January 1, 1998, and before January 1, 2001.  For public skateboard parks that are constructed after January 1, 1998, this subdivision shall apply to hazardous recreational activity injuries incurred on or after January 1, 1998, and before January 1, 2003.  For purposes of this subdivision, any skateboard facility that is a movable facility shall
be deemed constructed on the first date it is initially made available for use at any location by the local public agency. 
   (4) The appropriate local public agency shall maintain a record of all known or reported injuries incurred by a skateboarder in a public skateboard park or facility.  The local public agency shall also maintain a record of all claims, paid and not paid, including any lawsuits and their results, arising from those incidents that were filed against the public agency.  Beginning in 1999, copies of these records shall be filed annually, no later than January 30 each year, with the Judicial Council, which shall submit a report to the Legislature on or before March 31, 2000, on the incidences of injuries incurred, claims asserted, and the results of any lawsuit filed, by persons injured while skateboarding in public skateboard parks or facilities.
   (5) This subdivision shall not apply on or after January 1, 2001, to public skateboard parks that were constructed on or before January 1, 1998, but shall continue to apply to public skateboard parks that
are constructed after January 1, 1998.
   (e) This section shall remain in effect until January 1, 2003, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, enacted before January 1, 2003, deletes or extends that date.

  SEC. 2.  Section 115800 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:
   115800.  (a) No operator of a skateboard park shall permit any person to ride a skateboard therein, unless that person is wearing a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads.
   (b) With respect to any facility, owned or operated by a local public agency, that is designed and maintained for the purpose of recreational skateboard use, and that is not supervised on a regular
basis, the requirements of subdivision (a) may be satisfied by compliance with the following:
   (1) Adoption by the local public agency of an ordinance requiring any person riding a skateboard at the facility to wear a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads.
   (2) The posting of signs at the facility affording reasonable notice that any person riding a skateboard in the facility must wear a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads, and that any person failing to do so will be subject to citation under the ordinance required by paragraph (1).
   (c) "Local public agency" for purposes of this section includes, but is not limited to, a city, county, or city and county.
   (d) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2003.

  SEC. 3.  Notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government Code, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.  If the statewide cost of the claim for
reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000), reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund.  Notwithstanding Section 17580 of the Government Code, unless otherwise specified, the provisions of this act shall become operative on the same date that the act takes effect pursuant to the California Constitution.

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