BILL ANALYSIS
AB 874
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 14, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Mike Feuer, Chair
AB 874 (Saldana) - As Introduced: February 26, 2009
PROPOSED CONSENT (As Proposed To Be Amended)
SUBJECT : RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES: SKATEBOARDING
KEY ISSUE : SHOULD THE REQUIREMENT THAT ANY PERSON RIDING A
SKATEBOARD IN A SPECIFIED SKATEBOARD PARK WEAR ELBOW PADS AND
KNEE PADS BE DELETED, GIVEN THAT THE ALTERNATIVE OF SKATING IN
THE STREETS IS MORE DANGEROUS AND THAT ELBOW AND KNEE PADS ONLY
PROVIDE LIMITED PROTECTION SUCH THAT THE KEY SAFETY PROTECTION
UNDER CURRENT LAW IS THE HELMET REQUIREMENT?
FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print this bill is keyed
non-fiscal.
SYNOPSIS
This bill seeks to eliminate the safety requirement in current
law that city and county owned or operated skateboard parks
require users to wear elbow and knee pads in addition to safety
helmets. This change in law is supported by the Civil Justice
Association of California (CJAC), which states that removing
this presumed safety requirement will actually lead to enhanced
safety by getting more "boarders" back into the parks and off
local streets. CJAC reasonably appears to contend that many
boarders currently avoid using the parks and instead stay on the
streets since they refuse to be forced to wear elbow pads and
knee pads. The author's office provided the Committee anecdotal
evidence in support of this argument, which appears to have some
"real life" merit. There is no known opposition, and the
Consumer Attorneys of California are neutral on the measure.
SUMMARY : Seeks to remove the requirement in current law that
city and county owned or operated skateboard parks require users
to wear elbow pads and knee pads to enhance safety while
retaining the requirement that "boarders" wear safety helmets.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Sets forth the guidelines that an operator of a skateboard
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park must follow as well as the requirements with respect to a
facility owned and operated by a local public agency. (Health
and Safety Code Section 115800.)
2)Provides that skateboarding at a public skateboard park is a
"hazardous recreational activity" (HRA) as such activities are
defined in Government Code Section 831.7, thereby granting
local public agencies who operate such parks qualified
immunity from liability for any injuries sustained as a result
of an individual participating in or watching such
skateboarding, if the following conditions are met:
a) The person skateboarding is 12 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.
3)Requires the Judicial Council to submit a report to the
Legislature on or before March 31, 2011, reporting on the
incidences of injuries incurred, the number of claims
asserted, and the results of any lawsuits filed by persons
injured while skateboarding in public skateboard parks or
facilities.
4)Sunsets the qualified immunity granted public skate board
parks on January 1, 2012.
COMMENTS : This bill seeks to eliminate the safety requirement
in current law that city and county owned or operated skateboard
parks require users to wear elbow and knee pads in addition to
safety helmets. This change in law is supported by the Civil
Justice Association of California (CJAC), which states its
belief that removing this presumed safety requirement will
actually lead to enhanced safety by getting more "boarders" back
into the parks and off local streets. CJAC reasonably appears
to contend that many boarders currently avoid using the parks
and instead stay on the streets since they refuse to be forced
to wear elbow pads and knee pads. The author's office provided
the Committee anecdotal evidence in support of this argument,
which appears to have some "real life" merit.
Backdrop : In 1983, California codified a qualified immunity for
public entities for injuries suffered by individuals engaged in
hazardous recreational activities. The included activities,
such as rock climbing, skydiving and parachuting, all were found
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to pose a substantial risk of injury to a participant or
spectator. Over the years, other attempts have been made to
expand the list of hazardous recreational activities. For
example, mountain biking, but not ordinary use of a bicycle, was
added to the list of hazardous recreational activities. In
1997, AB 1296 (Morrow) added skateboarding, under certain
conditions, to the list of hazardous recreational activities.
That provision was extended in 2002 by SB 994 (Morrow), and then
again by AB 1179 -- which is set to sunset on January 1, 2012,
unless legislation is enacted to extend or repeal that
provision.
Currently skateboarding results in public entity immunity only
when the participant is at least 12, and he or she is performing
trick, stunt, or luge skateboarding on public property meeting
certain requirements. With this grant of qualified immunity,
local communities have been more comfortable building public
skateboarding parks. These skateboarding parks provide a
dedicated location for individuals to skateboard without worry
of trespassing on private property or vehicular hazards. They
also are intended to entice "boarders" off local streets and
highways, and public sidewalks - where such activities can pose
great risk to passers-by.
Under the current qualified immunity statute, all skateboard
parks are mandated - in order to enjoy the immunity-to require
the use of helmets, elbow pads, and knee pads. Thus the current
scheme both provides dedicated locations for skateboarding and
encourages the public agency to require use of proper safety
equipment so as to avoid liability.
Risks of Skateboarding : Some supporters of the measure note the
dangers of skateboarding, while others emphasize the sport's
safety. The City of Lake Forest proclaimed that "[c]learly,
skateboarding is an activity that is hazardous regardless of
age." Further elaborating on the danger posed, the California
Association of Joint Powers Authorities (CAJPA) contends that
"participants . . . are well aware of risks associated with
skateboarding. Let's be realistic: we are talking about a small
platform set on wheels, and 'ridden' at significant speeds on
and around cement surfaces and obstacles."
Deleting/Changing the Report Requirement : The Judicial
Council's reports to the Legislature, as required by Health and
Safety Code section 115800, demonstrate skate boarding's
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apparently relatively low injury rate in the parks. For
example, the Council's March 13, 2002, report found that a total
of 80 skateboarding injuries occurred at skateboarding parks in
nine cities during the 2001 calendar year. This amounts to less
than one injury per skateboard park per month. Furthermore,
none of these injuries apparently resulted in a lawsuit against
the city. In fact, there are no published California cases
including suits against a city for injuries caused at a
skateboarding park. In addition, reports submitted to the
Judicial Council from public skate parks indicate that injuries,
when they do occur, are often mild. Finally, the author
references a report from a privately owned skate park operating
for over 30 years (Kona Skate Park) which indicates that elbow
and knee pads do not prevent serious injury. In 2000, after the
park removed the 23-year-old pad requirement, the injury rate
actually fell by 27%.
Author's Amendment : Given the earlier reporting provided by the
Judicial Council showing skateboarding in parks to cause
relatively few serious injuries, the Author is amending her
measure to delete the reporting requirement in the law.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : In support of this apparent diminution in
safety requirements at public skateboard parks, the Civil
Justice Association of California (CJAC) writes in part that:
This bill simply removes the requirement that
skateboarders must use elbow and knee pads. Removing
this requirement will encourage more skateboarders to
use safer city or county parks, without the dangers of
collisions with cars or pedestrians.
California courts have followed a course consistent
with this bill. Courts have agreed that skateboarding
is a hazardous activity and have declined to find
liability when skateboarders are injured in the course
of their sport. In fact, the risk associated with the
sport is part of the attraction?
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California State Association of Counties
Civil Justice Association of California
AB 874
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International Association of Skateboard Companies
12 individuals
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Drew Liebert and Seth Benkle / JUD. /
(916) 319-2334