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House committee advances Sarah Marsh 'Heavens 27' Camp Safety Act after emotional testimony from mother
Summary
HB381 would require emergency-preparedness licensing for summer camps, a public registry, five-year licenses administered by the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, annual emergency plans, NOAA weather radios, mandatory training and background checks. The committee adopted an amendment and advanced the bill; the sponsor and the mother of a Texas flood victim urged passage.
A House committee adopted an amendment and advanced HB381, the Sarah Marsh Heavens 27 Camp Safety Act, a bill to establish emergency-preparedness licensing and safety standards for summer camps.
Representative Faulkner, sponsor of the bill, said HB381 responds to gaps in camp safety exposed by the Camp Mystic flood in Texas. The bill would require camps serving Alabama families to obtain a five-year emergency-preparedness license from the Alabama Emergency Management Agency, maintain a public registry of licensed camps, produce and update annual emergency-action plans covering flooding and evacuation, install audible camp-wide alarms and NOAA weather radios, provide mandatory safety training and drills, perform staff criminal-background checks, and restrict cabins in designated flood zones. The sponsor said licenses would be updated if a camp expands boundaries or adds cabins and that the law would not alter civil liability standards for camps.
The committee considered an amendment clarifying the definition of camps and camp operators, excluding residents of educational institutions from the definition, requiring lessees who operate camps to familiarize staff with emergency plans, and adding a YMCA representative to an advisory board. The amendment passed by voice vote and the bill passed the committee as amended.
Jill Marsh, mother of Sarah Marsh, who died in the Texas camp flood, delivered emotional testimony urging passage and said standardized measures could prevent future tragedies. She said the bill's standards would help ensure parents can trust camps with their children.
The committee advanced HB381 to the next stage of the legislative process.
