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Committee advances Mason Sells AED coordination bill after family's testimony about campus deaths
Summary
SB 399 would require 911 systems and institutions to coordinate AED locations and dispatch information. The Senate Public Safety Committee unanimously advanced the bill after moving testimony from the father of Mason Sells, who said an inaccessible AED contributed to his son's death.
Senate Bill 399, the Mason Sells AED Coordination Act, advanced unanimously from the Senate Public Safety Committee after emotional testimony from Mason's father and technical discussion about 911 coordination.
Sponsor Senator Harvin said the bill addresses gaps in AED accessibility and 911 dispatch knowledge — particularly on university campuses where AED locations are sometimes not recorded or are stored in locked offices. The legislation would create a mechanism to share rudimentary AED location maps with 911 centers so dispatchers can direct callers to the nearest accessible device.
Scott Sells, father of Mason Sells, recounted his son's collapse during an intramural soccer match and detailed how an AED was unavailable on the field even though one existed nearby inside a locked office. He contrasted Mason's death with another student who survived when an accessible AED was used. "3 events, 2 different outcomes, 1 big difference," he told the committee, urging the state to close the coordination gap.
Senators and witnesses discussed adding AED location data to 911 systems in machine-readable forms and the potential for manufacturers to add tracking technology in the future. The committee moved the bill on a motion by Senator Robertson; it passed unanimously and will proceed to the next committees.
The hearing included expressions of sympathy and repeated calls for practical steps that let 911 dispatchers and callers locate AEDs quickly so bystanders can be coached to use the devices while EMS is en route.
