Louisiana Senate Bill SB260

Louisiana 2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/26/26
• Refer: 2/26/26
• Refer: 3/9/26
• Report Pass: 4/14/26
• Engrossed: 4/20/26
• Refer: 4/21/26
• Report Pass: 4/27/26
• Enrolled: 5/12/26
• Chaptered: 5/22/26
• Passed: 5/22/26

Caption

LIABILITY: Provides relative to youth athletics. (gov sig)

Summary

SB 260, known as the "Coach Safely Act," updates Louisiana law governing limited liability for volunteer athletic coaches, managers, team volunteers, athletic trainers, and sports team officials involved in youth athletics. The bill conditions that liability protection on participation in a safety orientation and training program or completion of a new "youth injury mitigation course." It also allows leagues to waive the training requirement if the individual can document equivalent first aid and safety proficiency, including current child CPR certification. The bill defines a youth injury mitigation course as a Louisiana Department of Health-approved course covering emergency preparedness for traumatic injuries in youth sports, concussions and head trauma, heat and extreme weather injuries, musculoskeletal overuse and conditioning, training equipment usage, and heart defects or abnormalities that can lead to sudden cardiac death. It directs the Department of Health to create and administer the approval process, publish and maintain a list of approved courses online within 180 days, review the list annually, and adopt rules as needed. The department is not required to spend state funds to develop the courses, but may accept donated online courses if approved.

Impact

SB 260 amends R.S. 9:2798 to expand and clarify the conditions under which volunteer youth sports personnel receive liability protection, and it enacts R.S. 40:1087.2 to assign the Louisiana Department of Health responsibility for approving and maintaining youth injury mitigation courses. The act affects youth sports organizations, volunteer coaches and officials, and training providers by creating a statewide framework for acceptable safety education tied to liability limitations. It also establishes an administrative role for the department without mandating state funding for course development.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the Senate 33-0, the House 85-0, and the Senate concurrence vote 36-0, indicating unanimous or near-unanimous legislative approval. The lack of committee transcript material also suggests there was little recorded opposition or extended debate in the available record.

Contention

No significant contention is evident in the available materials. The main policy choice is whether liability protection for volunteer youth sports personnel should depend on completion of approved safety training, but the bill provides flexibility by allowing leagues to accept equivalent first aid and CPR credentials. Any potential concerns would likely center on administrative burden, course approval standards, or whether the Department of Health should be responsible for maintaining the approved-course list, but no recorded opposition appears in the provided votes or transcripts.