ENGROSSED SENATE BILL 5592
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2023 Regular Session
By Senators Hunt, Cleveland, Conway, Lovick, Randall, Valdez, Van De
Wege, and C. Wilson
Read first time 01/27/23. Referred to Committee on Health & Long
Term Care.
1 AN ACT Relating to requiring semiautomatic external
2 defibrillators at fitness centers; adding a new section to chapter
3 70.54 RCW; and creating a new section.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
5 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 70.54
6 RCW to read as follows:
7 (1) The owner of a fitness center shall acquire and maintain at
8 least one semiautomatic external defibrillator on premises.
9 (2) The fitness center must comply with the requirements of RCW
10 70.54.310, including instruction of personnel on the use of the
11 defibrillator, maintenance of the defibrillator, and notification of
12 the local emergency medical services organization about the location
13 of the defibrillator.
14 (3) An employee of a fitness center who has completed the
15 instruction required under RCW 70.54.310 may render emergency care or
16 treatment using a semiautomatic external defibrillator on the fitness
17 center premises.
18 (4) A person who uses a semiautomatic external defibrillator at
19 the scene of an emergency is immune from civil liability pursuant to
20 RCW 70.54.310.
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 1 (5)(a) "Fitness center" means any premises used for recreation,
2 instruction, training, physical exercise, body building, weight loss,
3 figure development, martial arts, or other similar activity, that
4 offers access on a membership basis.
5 (b) "Fitness center" does not include: (i) Public common schools,
6 private schools approved under RCW 28A.195.010, and public or private
7 institutions of higher education; (ii) facilities operated by bona
8 fide nonprofit organizations which have been granted tax-exempt
9 status by the internal revenue service, the functions of which as
10 fitness centers are only incidental to their overall functions; and
11 (iii) private facilities operated out of a home that do not offer
12 memberships.
13 NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) Subject to the availability of amounts
14 appropriated for this specific purpose, by July 1, 2024, the
15 department of commerce shall establish a four-year grant program for
16 the purpose of assisting fitness centers with complying with the
17 requirements of acquiring and maintaining at least one semiautomatic
18 external defibrillator as referenced in section 1 of this act.
19 (2) The department of commerce may adopt rules to implement the
20 grant program referenced in this section.
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