In the near future The United States House of Representatives is voting on proposed laws to reauthorize the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to oversee theme parks and ride safety. They seek to correct a 1981 loophole freeing theme parks and their rides from federal safety regulation and review. As we know from this blog the state of Florida also exempts theme parks from most safety standards and reporting of injuries. The result is that it is virtually impossible for a consumer to learn if a ride is safe or not or to learn about the nature and extent of injuries on a ride.
Big theme park lobbyists are hitting hard at legislators on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, where the bill is being drafted. All of us need to act to counteract these special interests from compromising our safety by compromising this legislation. Please contact your representative and the members of the Commerce Committee so they can understand the dangers and unfairness of exempting the big amusement parks from standard public safety policy.
Please call, write, or email your congressmember and urge them to support HR 2320, the National Amusement Park Rides Safety Act. Send a copy to the committee and subcommittee chairmen and Rep. Markey (contact info below). You can find your congressmember at: http://www.house.gov/writerep.
HR2320 has been endorsed by the Saferparks, the American Academy of Pediatrics, Consumers Union, Consumer Federation of America, and National Safe Kids Campaign, among others.I
According to Saferparks.org, a grass roots organization dediicated to prevention of theme park injuries:
There is no public safety authority to track hazard patterns on amusement park rides, set national standards to protect the safety of children, or ensure that information on defects discovered in a ride in one state are shared with state or local regulators in every state.
We need your help to get this legislation passed. The Big Theme Parks spare no expense to keep the public from knowing the injuries sustained on the rides. These include hidden fatal injuries and serious injuries to children. You can do your part by contacting your Representative and the following committee members:
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Representative John Dingell
Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce
2328 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-4071
Representative Bobby Rush
Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Trade
2416 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
phone: 202-225-4372
fax: 202-226-0333
Rep. Ed Markey
2108 Rayburn House
Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
202-225-2836
staff: Mark Bayer (mark.bayer@mail.house.gov)
For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Premises Liability.
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