State bill will end liability protection for county lifeguards at state beaches | Maui News
Apr 29, 2017
The state Senate has agreed to a state House version of a bill that would end limited liability protection to county lifeguards at state beach parks, but Mayor Alan Arakawa said that lifeguards at Makena State Beach Park would not be affected.
The House version requires the state attorney general to defend any civil lawsuit brought against a county based on negligence, a wrongful act or omission by a county lifeguard providing services at a state beach park.
“The Senate agreed that the concerns raised by the potential sunset of the current law outweigh the difference of opinion in the current form of the bill that exists between the House and Senate,” a Senate announcement said.
Senate Majority Leader J. Kalani English, who represents East Maui, Upcountry, Molokai and Lanai, pledged to try again next session to get immunity from lawsuits for lifeguards.
“I’ve always advocated for the protection of county lifeguards and to provide them the tools they need to do their job,” he said. “I will continue to pursue this issue and introduce a bill next session to try to restore immunity for the lifeguards.”
