Klobuchar, Curtis Bipartisan Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act Passes Out of Committee

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Curtis (R-UT) announced their legislation to reauthorize and strengthen the bipartisan Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee. In addition to continuing to require all public pools to install safe drain covers that prevent suction entrapment and fund a national public education campaign to raise awareness about drowning prevention, this updated legislation expands the grant program at the Consumer Product Safety Commission to include tribes as eligible recipients, and modernizes the grant program’s requirements to reflect the needs of pool owners and operators. The bill would also ensure the Consumer Product Safety Commission has a dedicated employee focused on drowning prevention. “This bipartisan legislation makes critical updates to the original law that incentivized states to enact pool safety laws,” said Klobuchar. “Working together, there is so much we can do to make sure our pools are safe. We can stop entrapments. We can prevent drownings. We can save lives. This law has made a major difference nationwide and I am pleased it advanced with bipartisan support today.” “Parents should be able to trust that when their kids jump into a pool, the structure of the pool itself doesn’t pose any hazards,” said Curtis. “This bipartisan bill builds on a proven law to prevent drownings and protect children. I’m glad to see it advance out of committee and look forward to its passage by the full Senate.” "The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act is a perfect example of how sensible and sound policy can save lives. Since the passage of the legislation, entrapment deaths in public pools have ceased and have been substantially reduced in private pool settings,” said Alissa Magrum, Executive Director of the National Drowning Prevention Alliance. “This shows how well-designed legislation can have direct impacts on child safety and engineer our pool environments to be safer for all. The reauthorization not only ensures communities continue to be safe from this preventable tragedy, but also that water safety efforts will continue across the country to address the more than 4,000 fatal drownings the US experiences each year.” "Our daughter Abbey's hope was that no other child would experience a death or injury from a dangerous pool or spa. The VGB Act was the realization of that hope. We can all still do better with the reauthorization of this critical safety legislation. We unequivocally support this bill,” said Scott and Katey Taylor, Founders of Abbey's Hope Charitable Foundation. "The passage of the VGB Act, in a significant way, has helped to make some sense of the tragic death of my daughter, Graeme, and so many children whose lives have been lost in preventable drownings,” said Nancy Baker, Mother of Virginia Graeme Baker and water safety advocate. “The reauthorization of the legislation also makes sense, as we have learned over the past 15 years what works well and what might be done even better to ensure water safety. I am fully supportive of the bill.” “The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act has saved lives. Reauthorization of this Act allows for its proven safety standards to continue to do its good work, making pools and spas across the United States safer for those who use them,” said William Ramos, Ph.D., American Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council Aquatics Chair. “This legislative intervention creates actions and outcomes that those working in public health so often hope to see. It works!” “The core purpose of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance is to prioritize safety and health in pool and hot tub environments. We have been unwavering in our support for the reauthorization of the VGB Act, recognizing its significant impact on saving lives,” said Sabeena Hickman, CAE, President & CEO of the Pool & Hot Tub Alliance (PHTA). “PHTA is proud to play a role in the VGB Act through the development of two industry safety standards that establish stringent requirements for suction outlet fitting assemblies and suction entrapment avoidance. By reauthorizing this legislation, we will ensure a substantial reduction in fatal drownings—a cause that deserves universal backing.” In 2007, six-year-old daughter Abbey Taylor suffered a debilitating injury from a pool drain accident. After meeting with Abbey, Scott, and Abbey’s mother Katey, Klobuchar led the successful efforts to pass the original Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, which was signed into law in 2007, shortly before Abbey passed away in March 2008 after undergoing sixteen surgeries. Since the law’s passage, there have been no drain entrapment deaths in any public pool within the country. ###