BILL NUMBER: SB 39 ENROLLED
BILL TEXT
PASSED THE SENATE JULY 16, 2009
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY JULY 1, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 26, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 13, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 27, 2009
AMENDED IN SENATE FEBRUARY 24, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Senator Benoit
(Principal coauthor: Senator Romero)
(Principal coauthors: Assembly Members Feuer and Nestande)
(Coauthors: Senators Ashburn, Cogdill, Cox, Denham, Dutton,
Harman, Hollingsworth, Huff, Maldonado, Runner, Strickland, Walters,
and Wyland)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Anderson, DeVore, Fuller, Gilmore,
Hagman, Knight, Nielsen, Silva, and Yamada)
JANUARY 6, 2009
An act to amend Section 1714.5 of the Civil Code, relating to
personal liability, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 39, Benoit. Personal liability immunity: disaster service
workers.
Existing law provides that no disaster worker who is performing
disaster services during a state of war emergency, a state of
emergency, or a local emergency shall be liable for civil damages on
account of personal injury to or death of any person or property, as
provided.
This bill would provide that disaster service workers shall not be
liable when acting within the scope of their responsibilities under
the authority of the governmental emergency organization, as
provided. This bill would provide that these provisions apply
exclusively to any legal action filed on or after the effective date
of this bill.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1714.5 of the Civil Code is amended to read:
1714.5. (a) There shall be no liability on the part of one,
including the State of California, county, city and county, city or
any other political subdivision of the State of California, who owns
or maintains any building or premises which have been designated as a
shelter from destructive operations or attacks by enemies of the
United States by any disaster council or any public office, body, or
officer of this state or of the United States, or which have been
designated or are used as mass care centers, first aid stations,
temporary hospital annexes, or as other necessary facilities for
mitigating the effects of a natural, manmade, or war-caused
emergency, for any injuries arising out of the use thereof for such
purposes sustained by any person while in or upon said building or
premises as a result of the condition of said building or premises or
as a result of any act or omission, or in any way arising from the
designation of such premises as a shelter, or the designation or use
thereof as a mass care center, first aid station, temporary hospital
annex, or other necessary facility for emergency purposes, except a
willful act, of such owner or occupant or his or her servants, agents
or employees when such person has entered or gone upon or into said
building or premises for the purpose of seeking refuge, treatment,
care, or assistance therein during destructive operations or attacks
by enemies of the United States or during tests ordered by lawful
authority or during a natural or manmade emergency.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no disaster
service worker who is performing disaster services during a state of
war emergency, a state of emergency, or a local emergency, as such
emergencies are defined in Section 8558 of the Government Code, shall
be liable for civil damages on account of personal injury to or
death of any person or damage to property resulting from any act or
omission while performing disaster services anywhere within any
jurisdiction covered by such emergency, except one that is willful.
(c) For purposes of this subdivision, a disaster service worker
shall be performing disaster services when acting within the scope of
the disaster service worker's responsibilities under the authority
of the governmental emergency organization.
(d) For purposes of this subdivision, "governmental emergency
organization" shall mean the emergency organization of any state,
city, city and county, county, district, or other local governmental
agency or public agency, which is authorized pursuant to the
California Emergency Services Act (Chapter 7 (commencing with Section
8550) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code).
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter any
existing legal duties or obligations. The amendments to this section
made by the act amending this section shall apply exclusively to any
legal action filed on or after the effective date of the act.
SEC. 2. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
Because the state has long encouraged Californians to assist
others facing danger in an emergency, and the ability to do so
without fear of potential suit has been thrown into question by the
recent California Supreme Court decision of Van Horn v. Watson,
(2008) 45 Cal.4th 322, decided on December 18, 2008, this legislation
clarifying the intent of the Legislature needs to go into effect
immediately so as to avoid any confusion in this important area of
the law.