2003-2004 Bill 3046: Rider Safety Act, Amusement and Carnival Rides - South Carolina Legislature

1 South Carolina General Assembly 2 115th Session, 2003-2004 3 4 H. 3046 5 6 STATUS INFORMATION 7 8 General Bill 9 Sponsors: Reps. Scarborough, Littlejohn, Vaughn and Richardson 10 Document Path: l:\council\bills\nbd\11024ac03.doc 11 12 Introduced in the House on January 14, 2003 13 Currently residing in the House Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry 14 15 Summary: Rider Safety Act, amusement and carnival rides 16 17 18 HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS 19 20 Date Body Action Description with journal page number 21 12/4/2002 House Prefiled 22 12/4/2002 House Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry 23 1/14/2003 House Introduced and read first time HJ-26 24 1/14/2003 House Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry HJ-26 25 1/21/2003 House Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Richardson 26 27 28 VERSIONS OF THIS BILL 29 30 12/4/2002 31 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 A BILL 10 11 TO AMEND CHAPTER 18, TITLE 41, CODE OF LAWS OF 12 SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 3 SO AS 13 TO ENACT THE SOUTH CAROLINA RIDER SAFETY ACT 14 REQUIRING RIDERS OF AMUSEMENT AND CARNIVAL 15 DEVICES TO COMPLY WITH CERTAIN SAFETY 16 REQUIREMENTS, TO REPORT INJURIES IN A TIMELY 17 MANNER, TO REQUIRE OWNERS OF SUCH DEVICES TO 18 POST SIGNS RELATING TO RIDER SAFETY, AND TO 19 ESTABLISH A MISDEMEANOR FOR VIOLATIONS OF THIS 20 ARTICLE; AND TO DESIGNATE SECTIONS 41-18-10 21 THROUGH 41-18-150 AS ARTICLE 1, CHAPTER 18, TITLE 22 41, AND TO NAME THAT ARTICLE “GENERAL 23 PROVISIONS”. 24 25 Whereas, the General Assembly finds: 26 (1) carnival or amusement devices are used by a large number 27 of citizens of this State and attract to this State a large number of 28 nonresidents, significantly contributing to the tourist industry and 29 tax base of this State; 30 (2) the safety of the public using carnival or amusement 31 devices is an important matter of public policy; 32 (3) there are inherent risks associated with all machinery, 33 equipment, or animals that are impractical or impossible for an 34 amusement owner to eliminate with all reasonable safety 35 precautions, and an informed rider is in the best position to avoid 36 those risks; and 37 (4) the safety of carnival or amusement devices will be greatly 38 improved at minimal cost if riders are subject to safety standards 39 for their own protection and the protection of others. Now 40 therefore, 41

1 [3046] 1 1 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South 2 Carolina: 3 4 SECTION 1. Chapter 18, Title 41 of the 1976 Code is amended 5 by adding: 6 7 “Article 3 8 9 Rider Safety 10 11 Section 41-18-300. This article may be cited as the ‘South 12 Carolina Rider Safety Act’. 13 14 Section 41-18-310. As used in this article: 15 (1) ‘Parent or guardian’ means each parent, custodian, or 16 guardian responsible for the control, safety, training, or education 17 of a minor, disabled, or incompetent rider. 18 (2) ‘Rider’ means a person who is: 19 (a) waiting in the immediate vicinity to get on a carnival 20 or amusement device; 21 (b) getting on a carnival or amusement device; 22 (c) using a carnival or amusement device; 23 (d) getting off a carnival or amusement device; or 24 (e) leaving a carnival or amusement device and still in its 25 immediate vicinity. 26 ‘Rider’ does not include employees or agents of the owner while 27 engaged in the duties of their employment. 28 (3) ‘Sign’ means a symbol or language reasonably calculated 29 to communicate information to riders or riders’ parents or 30 guardians including, but not limited to, placards, prerecorded 31 messages, live public address, stickers, pictures, pictograms, 32 guidebooks, brochures, video, verbal information, and visual 33 signals. Lettering on signs used for this purpose must be two 34 inches in height. 35 36 Section 41-18-320. (A) A rider shall at a minimum: 37 (1) obey the posted rules and warnings and instructions for a 38 carnival or amusement device issued by the owner or the owner’s 39 employee or agent; and 40 (2) refrain from acting in any manner that may cause or 41 contribute to injuring the rider or others, including: 42 (a) exceeding the limits of the rider’s ability;

1 [3046] 2 1 (b) interfering with safe operation of the carnival or 2 amusement device; 3 (c) not engaging any safety devices that are provided; 4 (d) disconnecting or disabling a safety devise except at the 5 express instruction of the owner’s agent or employee; 6 (e) altering or enhancing the intended speed, course, or 7 direction of a carnival or amusement device; 8 (f) using, touching, or tampering with the controls of a 9 carnival or amusement device designed solely to be operated by 10 the owner’s agent or employee; 11 (g) extending arms and legs beyond the carrier or seating 12 area except at the express direction of the owner’s agent or 13 employee; 14 (h) throwing, dropping, or expelling an object from or 15 toward a carnival or amusement device except as permitted by the 16 owner’s agent or employee; 17 (i) getting on or off a carnival or amusement device 18 except at the designated time and area, if any, at the direction of 19 the owner’s agent or employee or in an emergency; 20 (j) not reasonably controlling the speed or direction of the 21 rider or a carnival or amusement device that requires the rider to 22 control or direct himself or a device; and 23 (k) overloading a carnival or amusement device beyond 24 its designed capacity. 25 (B) A rider must not get on or attempt to get on a carnival or 26 amusement device unless the rider, or the rider’s parent or 27 guardian on the rider’s behalf, reasonably determines that, at a 28 minimum, the rider: 29 (1) has sufficient knowledge to use, get on, and get off the 30 carnival or amusement device safely without instruction or has 31 requested and received before getting on the carnival or 32 amusement device sufficient information to get on, use, and get off 33 safely; 34 (2) has located, reviewed, and understood any signs in the 35 vicinity of the carnival or amusement device and has satisfied any 36 posted height or other restrictions or requirements; 37 (3) knows the range and the limits of his ability and 38 knows that the requirements of the carnival or amusement device 39 will not exceed those limits; 40 (4) is not under the influence of alcohol or any drug that 41 affects his ability to safely use the carnival or amusement device or 42 to obey the posted rules or warnings or instructions; and

1 [3046] 3 1 (5) is authorized by the owner’s authorized agent or 2 employee to get on the carnival or amusement device. 3 (C)(1) A rider, or a rider’s parent or guardian on the rider’s 4 behalf, shall report in writing to the owner any injury sustained on 5 a carnival or amusement device before leaving the owner’s 6 premises, including: 7 (a) the name, address, and phone number of the injured 8 person; 9 (b) a full description of the incident, the injuries claimed, 10 any treatment received, and the location, date, and time of the 11 injury; 12 (c) the cause of the injury, if known, and 13 (d) the names, addresses, and phone numbers of any 14 witnesses to the incident. 15 (2) If the rider, or the rider’s parent or guardian on the 16 rider’s behalf, is unable to file a report because of the severity of 17 the rider’s injuries, the rider, or the rider’s parent or guardian, shall 18 file the report as soon as reasonably possible. 19 (3) The failure of the rider, or the rider’s parent or guardian 20 on the rider’s behalf, to report an injury under this subsection has 21 no effect on the rider’s right to commence a civil action. 22 23 Section 41-18-330. Parents or guardians of riders have a duty to 24 ensure that a rider complies with all provisions of this article. 25 26 Section 41-18-340. (A) A facility’s security or law enforcement 27 officer may detain a person for a reasonable time in a reasonable 28 manner for the purpose of conducting an investigation if the 29 facility’s security or law enforcement officer has reasonable cause 30 to believe that the person to be detained has violated any of the 31 owner’s, or the owner’s agent’s or employee’s, lawful posted rules 32 or warnings or instructions. 33 (B) In a civil action brought by a person resulting from a 34 detention of a person by a facility’s security or law enforcement 35 officer, it is a defense to that action that the facility’s security or 36 law enforcement officer who detained the person had reasonable 37 cause to believe that the person had violated a lawful posted rule or 38 warning or direction of the owner, or of the owner’s employee or 39 agent, and that the facility’s security or law enforcement officer 40 detained the person for a reasonable time in a reasonable manner 41 for the purpose of conducting an investigation of the alleged 42 violation. 43

1 [3046] 4 1 Section 41-18-350. (A) The owner shall display signs that 2 include a legend providing that ‘State law requires riders to obey 3 all warnings and directions and behave in a manner that will not 4 cause or contribute to injuring themselves or others. Riders must 5 report all injuries before leaving’. 6 (B) The owner shall display these signs at: 7 (1) any station for reporting an injury; 8 (2) any first aid station; and 9 (3) either: 10 (a) any entrance or exit to or from the premises designated 11 for riders; or 12 (b) any area or structure at which riders may purchase 13 admission or obtain authority to use a carnival or amusement 14 device. 15 16 Section 41-18-360. If a person wilfully violates this article, the 17 person is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be 18 fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more 19 than two months or both.” 20 21 SECTION 2. If any provision of this article or the application 22 thereof to any person is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect 23 other provisions or applications of the article which can be given 24 effect without the invalid provisions or application and to this end 25 the provisions of this article are severable. 26 27 SECTION 3. Sections 41-18-10 through 41-18-150 are 28 designated as Article 1, Chapter 18, Title 41 of the 1976 Code and 29 named “General Provisions”. 30 31 SECTION 4. This act takes effect January 1, 2004. 32 ----XX---- 33

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