Senate committee advances bill limiting volunteer liability for no-fee recreation clubs

BOISE, Idaho — The Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee voted to send House Bill 81 to the fourteenth order for possible amendment after lawmakers heard testimony that high insurance costs and fear of lawsuits are reducing leadership in volunteer recreation clubs.

Senator Cindy Carlson, R‑District 7, introduced the bill, saying it is designed “to encourage the formation of recreation clubs and participation in recreation activities organized by clubs by limiting the liability of volunteers and members from claims from injury” where the activity is offered without a charge. Carlson said the bill excludes claims arising from intentional conduct, gross negligence and situations where the club provides the equipment that caused injury.

The measure applies only to recreation activities “done without charge or fee payable to the recreation club or a club member,” Carlson told the committee.

Jason David Claiborne, an attorney representing the Idaho Recreation Council and the Idaho State ATV Association, said the legislation aims to protect volunteers, officers and club organizers from lawsuits that arise solely because they organized an activity with inherent risks. "We want to protect club members and volunteers from liability simply because they organize or facilitate the event, while still allowing a claim to be made against those directly responsible for the injury," Claiborne said.

Claiborne and Senator Carlson told the committee there is an agreed change to the draft that would remove language providing that a recreation club "owe no duty of care to make any recreation activity safe for a participant" — deleting the explicit no‑duty clause and leaving duty‑to‑warn questions for courts to decide on a case‑by‑case basis.

Kate Haas of Kestrel West, which formed a volunteer running club in the Treasure Valley, told the committee volunteers appreciate the additional protection the bill would provide for leaders who run open events where nonmembers or prospective members may show up without signing a waiver. "It really brought a lot of extra comfort to those folks on our board knowing, that if this passes, they will have that layer of protection," Haas said, describing an incident in which a participant suffered a medical emergency during a club run.

Lawmakers asked whether the bill applies only to clubs that do not charge fees; Carlson confirmed the bill’s definition limits coverage to no‑fee activities. Questions also explored whether existing tort law already covers some protections; witnesses said the primary drivers for the legislation are rising insurance premiums and scarcity of volunteers willing to lead events.

Senator Ricks moved to send the bill to the fourteenth order for possible amendment; the motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.

If enacted, the bill would preserve claims for intentional acts, gross negligence and cases where the club supplied the equipment that caused injury, while narrowing liability for organizers, volunteers and members for harms arising from inherent risks of recreational activities offered without charge.

Votes at a glance: The committee approved a motion to send House Bill 81 to the fourteenth order for possible amendment by voice vote; the transcript records an affirmative voice vote and the chair declared the motion carried (exact roll call counts were not specified in the hearing transcript).