On January 13, 2011, SB11-040 was introduced into the Colorado Senate by Sen. Nancy Spence (R-Centennial). The bill, named the “Jake Snakenberg Youth Concussion Act,” was named after Jake Snakenberg, a freshman football player at Grandview High School who died in 2004 as a result of a concussion. As currently written, SB11-040 requires coaches who deal with 11-18 year old athletes in Colorado schools, private sports clubs, and recreation centers to attend annual concussion recognition courses. It also requires coaches to remove the player from the game, competition, or even practice if they suspect that the young athlete has sustained a concussion. Finally, the bill limits the liability of the coach unless his acts or omissions were grossly negligent, willful, or wanton, and completely shields any liability for board of directors or governing boards for the school districts, private clubs, or rec facilities for their coaches’ conduct.
The course is scheduled to be a 30-45 minute online course that will be offered for free statewide. The measure will likely get its first public hearing late this month or early next month. It has both Republican and Democratic sponsors in the State House as well as the Senate.
It will be very interesting to watch this bill as it progresses, and whether any opposition will be made because of the limited liability it proposes to those individuals we, as parents, entrust to keep our children safe during sports play. We will continue to monitor this bill and post any relevant updates as they arise. The complete bill, as introduced, together with the bill’s history can be found at: http://www.leg.state.co.us/clics/clics2011a/csl.nsf/fsbillcont3/A9CE9CEE12645CAA8725780800800D80?open&file=040_01.pdf
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