GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
IIAW JOINS COALITION SUPPORTING COVID-19 PREMISES LIABILITY LEGISLATION In early September, a broad and diverse coalition of 70 groups, including the Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin (IIAW), Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC), National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB-Wisconsin), Wisconsin Civil Justice Council (WCJC), Wisconsin Association of School Boards (WASB), Wisconsin Builders Association (WBA), Wisconsin Restaurant Association (WRA), Midwest Food Products Association (MFPA), many local chambers of commerce and Associated Builders and Contractors of Wisconsin (ABC), sent a memo Under the proposal, such liability protections urging the Legislature to co-sponsor and take would only apply to those entities that take adequate precautions to keep their premises safe action on the bill with committee hearings and floor votes in both houses. Unfortunately, the for their employees and customers. Legislature is not in session as lawmakers are Specifically, the bill protects from the threat of in full campaign mode with the November fall litigation by providing “safe harbor” to owners, lessees, occupants, or other individuals/entities in elections approaching quickly. There is a slight control of a premises so long as they follow public possibility that the Republicans would convene a health orders and take reasonable precautions to extraordinary session following the election to act on this and other targeted issues related to the protect the public. This liability exemption does pandemic. It appears more likely that any action not protect bad actors who knowingly violate on liability reforms will happen in early 2021 when public health orders or act in a manner that is the Legislature convenes its 2022-23 session. reckless, willful, or wanton. Passage of this legislation would put Wisconsin among a growing However, it also is unclear whether or not Governor Tony Evers would support such a list of states that have taken the commonsense measure. step of protecting businesses, schools and other entities against predatory lawsuits as a result of See a copy of the proposal LRB-6434 relating to COVID-19. As Wisconsinites look to reboot our COVID-19 Safe Harbor Liability Reform at economy and return to some sort of normalcy in http://bit.ly/OctGovAffairs. an extremely challenging environment, passage of liability protections are also essential to ensure that people do not fall victim to predatory lawsuits by some unscrupulous plaintiff’s attorneys >M isha Lee IIAW Lobbyist who view the pandemic as an opportunity. State Senator Chris Kapenga (R-Delafield), Representatives Mark Born (R-Beaver Dam) and Dan Knodl (R-Germantown) recently unveiled a legislative proposal that would shield Wisconsin businesses, schools, universities, and other entities from the threat of lawsuits alleging liability for COVID-19 exposures. Many are still struggling amid the prolonged pandemic and some lawmakers are actively seeking ways to keep the economy moving despite the Legislature not being in session.
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
| OCTOBER 2020 | 27
