| 1 | Representative Patterson offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Remove lines 23-58 and insert: |
| 5 | (1) POPULAR NAME.--This section shall be known by the |
| 6 | popular name the "Good Samaritan Volunteer Firefighters' |
| 7 | Assistance Act." |
| 8 | (2) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term: |
| 9 | (a) "Authorized technician" means a technician who is |
| 10 | certified by the manufacturer of fire control or fire rescue |
| 11 | equipment as qualified to inspect that equipment. The technician |
| 12 | may not be employed by the state agency or subdivision |
| 13 | administering the distribution of the fire control or fire |
| 14 | rescue equipment. |
| 15 | (b) "Qualified fire control or fire rescue equipment" |
| 16 | means equipment used for fire control or fire rescue which has |
| 17 | been recertified by an authorized technician as meeting the |
| 18 | manufacturer's specifications and which is distributed by or |
| 19 | through a state agency or subdivision to a volunteer fire |
| 20 | department. |
| 21 | (c) "State agency or subdivision" shall have the meaning |
| 22 | provided in s. 768.28(2). |
| 23 | (3) LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.--A state agency or |
| 24 | subdivision, including an officer, employee, or agent thereof, |
| 25 | who is acting within the scope of his or her employment or |
| 26 | function, which donates qualified fire control or fire rescue |
| 27 | equipment to a volunteer fire department is not liable for civil |
| 28 | damages under any state law for personal injury, property |
| 29 | damage, or death proximately caused, after the donation, by a |
| 30 | defect in the equipment. |
| 31 | (4) EXCEPTIONS TO LIABILITY PROTECTION.--Subsection (3) |
| 32 | does not apply to a state agency or subdivision if: |
| 33 | (a) The defect that proximately caused the personal |
| 34 | injury, property damage, or death resulted from: |
| 35 | 1. An act or omission of an officer, employee, or agent of |
| 36 | the state agency or subdivision which constitutes malice, gross |
| 37 | negligence, recklessness, or intentional misconduct; or |
| 38 | 2. A modification or alteration of the qualified fire |
| 39 | control or fire rescue equipment by the state agency or |
| 40 | subdivision, or by an officer, employee, or agent thereof, after |
| 41 | the equipment was recertified by an authorized technician as |
| 42 | meeting the manufacturer's specifications. |
| 43 | (b) The state agency or subdivision is the manufacturer of |
| 44 | the qualified fire control or fire rescue equipment. |
| 45 |
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| 46 | Nothing in this section shall be construed as a waiver of |
| 47 | sovereign immunity. |
| 48 |
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| 49 | ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ============= |
| 50 | Remove lines 9-14 and insert: |
| 51 | that a state agency or subdivision, or an officer, employee, or |
| 52 | agent thereof is not liable for civil damages resulting from |
| 53 | personal injuries, property damage, or death proximately caused |
| 54 | by defective fire control or fire rescue equipment donated to a |
| 55 | volunteer fire department; providing certain exceptions to the |
| 56 | limitation on liability; providing applicability; providing for |
| 57 | construction; |