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Committee approves Bill 146 to expand recreational-use liability protections for private landowners
Summary
A Senate committee approved Bill 146 to add specific recreational activities to Arkansasstatutory limits on landowner liability when private owners open their land for free public recreation, lawmakers and agency staff said.
A Senate committee voted to pass Bill 146, which adds horseback riding, cycling, mountain biking, rock climbing, skateboarding, hoverboarding and paddle boarding to the list of recreational activities covered by Arkansasstatutory limits on landowner liability when private owners voluntarily open property for recreational use.
The change amends a long-standing recreational-use statute first enacted in 1965, agency attorneys and Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism staff told the committee during a floor-level review. Hugh Clay Stone, general counsel at the Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism, said the statute "doesn't give the public a right to enter onto private property" and is aimed at owners who invite the public onto their land rather than where someone trespasses.
The committee heard repeated clarifications that the statutory exemption applies when a landowner does not charge a fee. "Only applies when the land owner is not charging a fee," Stone said. Catherine Andrews, director of the Office of Outdoor Recreation, described three categories of entry: trespassing, invited free entry and paid entry, and said the bill applies to the middle category, where a landowner invites people onto property at no charge.
Lawmakers pressed on limits and exceptions. Stone and Andrews cautioned that common-law tort doctrines still apply in some circumstances; Stone said there have been court cases addressing whether gross negligence or malicious actions fall outside the statutory protections. Committee members repeatedly asked about situations such as neighborhood children entering private pools, and were told that trespass and common-law duties could lead to liability in some instances and that swimming already is included in the statute.
Private landowner advocates and department staff told the committee enumerating specific activities reduces uncertainty for owners deciding whether to allow particular uses, such as mountain biking or rock climbing, along gaps in public trail networks. Marty Ryle, director of legislative affairs for Parks, Heritage and Tourism, said the listing helps encourage continuity where public trails cross private land.
A resident, Marty Lisonbee, asked during public comment whether a landowner would need to post signage to show a trail crosses private land and is covered by the liability limit; committee members and staff said they would follow up on that question after the hearing.
Senator Crowell moved to pass the bill and Senator Gilmore seconded. The committee conducted a voice vote. The chair declared, "Congratulations. Your bill passes." The committee indicated staff would attempt to move the measure to the floor; a separate bill mentioned during the hearing will not be heard in committee because an amendment had not been filed.
The bill, as discussed, preserves the statute's limits for invited, noncommercial recreational use, enumerates additional activities to reduce ambiguity for landowners and retains common-law exceptions described by agency counsel.
