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‘Lizzie’s Law’ would tighten inflatable‑device rules after fatal bounce‑house accident
Summary
AB198 would require business licensing, insurance, inspection logs, anchoring weights or stakes, a wind‑speed cutoff and prominent warning signs for inflatable amusements. The bill—prompted by the 2019 death of a Reno child, Lizzie Hammond—sets inspection, anchoring and recordkeeping requirements supporters say will prevent lofting incidents; the
Assemblymember Tracy Brown‑May presented AB198 and witnesses described a fatal 2019 bounce‑house accident in Reno that sponsors say demonstrates a statewide need for minimum safety rules for inflatable amusement devices.
Family testimony and sponsor overview Mitch and Wendy Hammond told the committee that their daughter, Lizzie, was killed when a backyard inflatable device and a water slide were lifted by a gust and struck power lines at about 17 miles per hour. Wendy Hammond described checking that ‘‘it had stakes around it’’ and said she was ‘‘falsely reassured’’ because she later learned the stakes used for that device were intended only to prevent small shifting and not to prevent lofting. She told the committee the device ‘‘went up into the power lines’’ and that rescue crews spent minutes waiting for utility personnel and ladder trucks before recovering children from the device; Lizzie was later declared brain‑dead and her family chose organ donation.
Assemblymember Brown‑May said the bill—presented as ‘‘Lizzie’s Law’’ by supporters—would set statewide minimum standards already used in Clark County and by many professional operators, including business licensing, insurance requirements, inspection logs, mandatory anchoring, wind‑speed monitoring, warning signage and operator training.
Major provisions discussed - Licensing and insurance: The draft would require operators that make inflatable devices available to hold a valid state business license and liability insurance or a bond of at least $1 million. - Logbook and inspections: Operators must keep a written or digital logbook available for inspection that records pre‑use inspections and the time/date of any temporary or permanent discontinuation. - Wind speed cutoff and monitoring: The draft initially set a 10 mph limit; sponsors negotiated to 20 mph and then the committee discussion considered reverting to 15 mph after testimony that the incident involved a 17 mph gust. The bill requires use of an anemometer to measure wind speed and recording the reading in the logbook. - Anchoring: After industry and sponsor negotiations, the bill requires weights (recommended 75 pounds per anchor point) rather than stakes for hard surfaces and permits stakes on soft ground; the bill would require a weight or stake at every anchor point and follow manufacturer's guidance if heavier anchors are specified. - Operator warnings and public information: The bill would require a prominently posted warning (red, large type) that the device has caused injury or death if improperly installed and that a logbook is available for inspection. - Civil presumption: A statutory provision in the draft would create a conclusive presumption of negligence per se in civil actions for violation of the act’s requirements.
Support, industry negotiation and questions Committee testimony included many community members, business owners and personal‑injury attorneys who supported the bill as basic consumer safety regulation; the Nevada Justice Association called it ‘‘basic consumer protection and safety.’’ Several small operators testified in support with suggested revisions (for example, permitting weights rather than stakes on hard surfaces and clarifying operator presence requirements).
Sponsor counsel Elliot Mallon said the sponsor and industry negotiated multiple conceptual amendments to allow 75‑pound weights instead of 100, permit weights rather than mandatory stakes on hard surfaces, require training of the renter if an operator does not remain on‑site, set a compliance effective date of January 1, 2026, and restrict logbook inspection to customers and enforcement agencies. Mallon characterized the bill as incremental: ‘‘we are working with them to try to find compromise to keep kids safe, and I think we have gotten a long way, in accepting a lot of the amendments that they brought forth.’’
Enforcement and open issues Committee members asked about enforcement responsibility (business licensing offices were discussed as a likely local enforcement channel), what constitutes acceptable logbook custody for devices left at events, whether operators must remain on site or whether renters must be trained, and the appropriate wind‑speed threshold. Sponsor and industry representatives said many responsible operators already follow much of the draft language; supporters urged the committee to prioritize a standard to prevent lofting and other wind‑related incidents.
Ending: Supporters closed with a request that the committee advance the measure; the hearing record shows no committee vote during the session transcript.
