S-320                 _______________________________________________

 

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 3554

                        _______________________________________________

 

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

 

By Senators Peterson, Patterson, Conner, Garrett, Granlund, DeJarnatt and Sellar

 

 

Read first time 2/4/85 and referred to Committee on Parks and Ecology.

 

 


AN ACT Relating to river recreational activities; adding a new chapter to Title 67 RCW; prescribing penalties; making an appropriation; providing an expiration date; and declaring an emergency.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1.     (1) "Advisory committee" means the river rafting advisory committee.

          (2) "Commission" means the state parks and recreation commission.

          (3) "Employee" means an individual who, in exchange for compensation or other pecuniary gain, provides river outfitting and guiding services exclusively under the direction, supervision, and control of a river outfitter and guide.

          (4) "River recreational activities" means commercial whitewater float trips, rafting trips, drift boat trips, kayak trips, inflatable canoe trips, and canoe trips of any duration on any river in this state, provided by a river outfitter and guide.

          (5) (a) "River outfitter and guide" means any person:

          (i) Who provides, or who offers to provide, for compensation or other pecuniary gain:

          (A) River outfitting and guiding services in Washington; or

          (B) River outfitting and guiding services and either equipment, supplies, or materials for use in Washington; or

          (ii) Who holds one or more federal permits for commercial outfitting and guiding services for use on any river in Washington.

          (b) River outfitting and guiding services are not offered or provided for compensation or pecuniary gain if:

          (i) No individual receives any compensation, equipment, materials, supplies, or other financial gain; and

          (ii) No money or other remuneration is in any manner paid or collected except  as a sharing by trip participants of the costs or expenses for the trip.

          (c) "River outfitter and guide" does not include:  (i) An employee of a river outfitter and guide; or (ii) an individual licensed under chapter 77.32 RCW and acting as a fishing guide, if all participants have current fishing licenses and necessary permits.

          (6) "River outfitting and guiding services" include, but are not limited to, leading, protecting, instructing, training, cooking, packing, guiding, transporting, supervising, interpreting, or otherwise assisting any person in the conduct of river recreational activities.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2.     (1) Any person who acts or offers to act as a river outfitter and guide must first file an affidavit of compliance with this chapter on forms provided by the commission.  Affidavits shall be renewed annually.  The affidavit shall include proof of insurance coverage and the following information:

          (a) The name, residence address, and residence telephone number of the person or persons providing river outfitting and guiding services with proof that such persons are at least eighteen years of age, and all business names, addresses, and telephone numbers under which river outfitting and guiding services are provided.

          (b) The names of all employees and agents who physically provide, or who directly assist in physically providing, outfitting and guiding services in Washington, together with the affidavit of the river outfitter and guide that each such employee or agent is at least eighteen years of age and possesses a current certificate issued to the employee or agent upon completion of a medical or American Red Cross training course approved by the commission.

          (c) A description of:

          (i) The river outfitting and guiding services, and any safety equipment, supplies, and materials provided by the river outfitter and guide which shall meet or exceed the minimum requirements prescribed under this chapter;

          (ii) The geographic area in which the river outfitter and guide provides the outfitting and guiding services, and any safety equipment, supplies, and materials; and

          (iii) The experience of the river outfitter and guide and employees in providing the river outfitting and guiding services, and safety equipment, supplies, and materials, which shall meet or exceed the minimum requirements prescribed under this chapter.

          (d) Proof that the river outfitter and guide has liability insurance covering occurrences by the outfitter and guide, and the employees of the outfitter and guide, which result in bodily injury or property damage.  Such insurance shall be not less than five hundred thousand dollars of general liability coverage per occurrence and also shall name the state and its political subdivisions as insureds on the policy.

          (e) Certification by the river outfitter and guide that the outfitter and guide will maintain the insurance required by (d) of this subsection continuously in full force and effect for a period of not less than one year from the date the certificate of compliance is issued by the commission.

          (f) The affidavit of the river outfitter and guide shall state whether, for a period of twenty-four months immediately preceding the affidavit, the river outfitter and guide:

          (i) Has had a river outfitting and guiding license, permit, or certificate revoked by another state or by an agency of the government of the United States for any reason related to safety or insurance coverage requirements; or

          (ii) Has been denied the right to apply for a river outfitting and guiding license, permit, or certificate by another state.

          In addition to any other grounds established under this chapter, the commission may deny issuance or renewal of a certificate of compliance based upon information submitted under this subparagraph (f).

          (g) Such other information  as may be required by the commission by rule.

          (2) The commission shall establish compliance monitoring procedures to verify, at its discretion, information contained in affidavits submitted under this chapter.  The commission also shall establish procedures for investigation of alleged violations of this chapter and the rules adopted by the commission under this chapter.  The commission shall adopt, after consultation with the advisory committee, such rules as are necessary to carry out this chapter including rules establishing the nature and extent of required medical or first aid training courses, the requisite experience for river outfitters and guides and their employees, necessary safety equipment, including rafts, to be carried in connection with river recreational activities, instruction regarding safety measures and other information to be provided to trip participants, and reporting of accidents.  The commission shall consider industry standards in developing these rules.

          (3) Affidavits of compliance shall be filed annually and shall be accompanied by the applicable fee as follows:

          (a) River outfitters and guides who are Washington residents:  Fifty dollars.

          (b) Nonresident river outfitters and guides:  Two hundred fifty dollars.

          (4) Upon the submission to the commission of the appropriate fee in subsection (3) of this section and the information required by this section, the commission shall issue to the applicant a river outfitter and guide certificate of compliance.

          (5) The commission may require the filing of supplementary affidavits to complete or update information contained in the annual affidavits of compliance, including information concerning employees not covered by the annual affidavit and any other information required by the commission.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3.     Any person who does not comply with this chapter or any rule adopted thereunder, or who makes any false statement of material fact in connection with any information submitted under section 2 of this act, is guilty of a gross misdemeanor punishable as provided under chapter 9A.20 RCW.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4.     The commission may deny the issuance or renewal of a certificate of compliance, or suspend or revoke the certificate, at any time for a violation of this chapter or any rule adopted by the commission under this chapter.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5.     (1) If an insurance company cancels or refuses to renew insurance for a river outfitter and guide required by section 2 of this act, the insurance company shall notify the commission in writing of the termination of coverage and its effective date not less than thirty days before the effective date of termination.

          (2) Upon receipt of an insurance coverage termination notice, the commission shall send written notice to the river outfitter and guide that on the effective date of the insurance coverage termination, the commission will suspend the certificate of compliance of the river outfitter and guide unless proof of insurance required by section 2 of this act is filed with the commission before the effective date of the proposed insurance coverage termination.

          (3) The commission may suspend or revoke the certificate of compliance issued to a river outfitter and guide if the outfitter and guide fails to maintain in full force and effect the insurance required by section 2 of this act.  A certificate of compliance that has been suspended or revoked under this section may not be reinstated until proof of insurance required by section 2 of this act has been filed with the commission.

          (4) If an insurance company fails to give notice of coverage termination, this failure shall not have the effect of continuing the coverage.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6.     (1) A multiple boat system as defined by the commission by rule shall be used by river outfitters and guides and their employees in the conduct of any river recreational activity.

          (2) Any person engaging in any river recreational activity occurring on waters of class III or above while under the influence of intoxicating alcohol or any drug is guilty of a misdemeanor.

          (3) In classifying waters for the purposes of this chapter, the commission shall refer to the international scale of river difficulty.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7.     (1) There is created in the Washington state parks and recreation commission a river rafting advisory committee to advise the commission regarding the administration of this chapter.

          (2) The purpose of the committee is to assist and advise the commission in the development of rules necessary to implement this chapter.

          (3) The committee shall consist of:

          (a) Six interested river outfitters and guides, appointed by the commission; each such member shall be a resident of an area of this state where river recreational activities occur, as defined by the commission;

          (b) Three representatives of the public, appointed by the commission; and

          (c) One representative of the department of natural resources, one representative of the department of game, and one representative of the Washington state association of counties, each of whom shall be appointed by the director of such department or association.

          (4) Terms of the members appointed under (3)(a) and (b) of this section shall commence on July 1st of the year of appointment and shall be for two years or until a successor is appointed, except in the case of appointments to fill vacancies which shall be for the remainder of the unexpired term.  The initial members of the committee shall be appointed for terms as follows:  Five members shall be appointed for one year and four members shall be appointed for two years.

          (5) The committee may meet at times and places fixed by the committee.  The committee shall meet not less than twice each year and additionally as required by the committee chairman or by majority vote of the committee.  One of the meetings shall be coincident with a meeting of the commission  at which the committee shall provide a report to the commission.  The chairman of the committee shall be chosen under rules adopted by the committee from those members appointed under (3)(a) and (b) of this section.

          (6) The Washington state parks and recreation commission shall serve as recording secretary to the committee and shall be a nonvoting member.

          (7) The committee shall adopt rules to govern its proceedings.

 

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8.     Investigations, inspections, rules, and orders of the commission, and any actions taken  or not taken by law enforcement personnel, which result from the exercise of the provisions of this chapter shall not in any manner be deemed to impose liability upon the state, its subdivisions, or any law enforcement personnel for any injury or damage resulting from the conduct of the activities regulated by this chapter.  All actions of the commission, its personnel, and any law enforcement personnel shall be deemed to be an exercise of the police power of the state.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9.     All law enforcement personnel in this state shall have authority to enforce this chapter and any rules adopted by the commission under this chapter.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10.    The river rafting advisory committee shall be subject before June 30, 1987, to the review process prescribed under chapter 43.131 RCW.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 11.    Sections 1 through 10 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 67 RCW.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12.    There is appropriated from the general fund to the parks and recreation commission for the biennium ending June 30, 1987, the sum of five thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, to carry out the purposes of this act.

 

          NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13.    This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.