CHARLESTON -- Cabell County's representatives in Charleston have introduced legislative bills that lessen the liability of local and county park and recreation districts for injuries suffered by someone acting carelessly on park property.

Sen. Evan Jenkins, D-Cabell, is the main sponsor of a bill introduced on Jan. 11 while the Cabell County delegation of the House of Delegates introduced a version of the bill on Tuesday. Both bills, which are similar to unsuccessful legislation that was introduced last session, have been referred to the chambers' committees on Natural Resources and Judiciary.

The Cabell County delegates include Democrats Jim Morgan, Dale Stephens, Doug Reynolds and Kevin Craig and Republicans Kelli Sobonya and Carol Miller.

The previous bill, SB 330, died in committee last January. Jenkins said bills typically take several years to garner support and make it through the legislative system.

The bills stem from state lawmakers' discussions with Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District officials about the district's continued financial struggles, Jenkins said. Increasing operating costs and insurance premiums from frivolous lawsuits have forced the park district to cut back on its programming and events, Jenkins said.

"The park district tends to be a target for anybody injured, trying to blame somebody else to get (financial) recovery," Jenkins said. "People need to accept some personal responsibility and not look toward the park district for compensation."

The Senate bill, SB 109, would establish guidelines to better direct courts on whether a lawsuit against a park district should proceed, Jenkins said.

"We're not changing the liability system for our park and recreation districts," Jenkins said. "We're not exempting them from liabilities, we're putting up parameters that are meant to weed out meritless lawsuits."

Jenkins noted that state law already grants a similar level of immunity to whitewater rafting companies, ski resorts and the Hatfield-McCoy Trails.

Jim McClelland, director of the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District, said during the 2008 legislative session that the West Virginia Recreation and Park Association and the West Virginia Resource Conservation and Development Association supported similar legislation previously. He is the Recreation and Park Association Committee's legislative committee chairman and is president of the Resource Conservation and Development Association.

The Huntington park district has paid out hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawsuit settlements in recent years, McClelland has said.

The park district's insurance costs have increased by about 300 percent over the past 10 years, McClelland has said. A large chunk of that increase can be attributed to rising liability insurance premiums, he said previously.

AP Video