IIB 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 1871 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 18, 2006 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

AN ACT 

To provide liability protection to nonprofit volunteer pilot 

organizations flying for public benefit and to the pilots 

and staff of such organizations. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Volunteer Pilot Orga3 nization Protection Act of 2006’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

6 (1) Scores of public benefit nonprofit volunteer 

7 pilot organizations provide valuable services to com8 munities and individuals. 

9 (2) In calendar year 2001, nonprofit volunteer 

10 pilot organizations provided long-distance, no-cost 

11 transportation for over 30,000 people in times of 

12 special need. 

13 (3) Such organizations are no longer able to 

14 reasonably purchase non-owned aircraft liability in15 surance to provide liability protection, and thus face 

16 a highly detrimental liability risk. 

17 (4) Such organizations have supported the in18 terests of homeland security by providing volunteer 

19 pilot services at times of national emergency. 

20 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to promote 

21 the activities of nonprofit volunteer pilot organizations fly22 ing for public benefit and to sustain the availability of the 

23 services that such organizations provide, including trans24 portation at no cost to financially needy medical patients 

25 for medical treatment, evaluation, and diagnosis, as well 


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1 as other flights of compassion and flights for humani2 tarian and charitable purposes. 

3 SEC. 3. LIABILITY PROTECTION FOR NONPROFIT VOLUN4 TEER PILOT ORGANIZATIONS FLYING FOR 

5 PUBLIC BENEFIT AND TO PILOTS AND STAFF 

6 OF SUCH ORGANIZATIONS. 

7 Section 4 of the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 

8 (42 U.S.C. 14503) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)(4)— 

10 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

11 and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; 

12 (B) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(4)’’; 

13 (C) by striking the period at the end and 

14 inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

15 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(B) the harm was caused by a volunteer of a 

17 nonprofit volunteer pilot organization that flies for 

18 public benefit, while the volunteer was flying in fur19 therance of the purpose of the organization and was 

20 operating an aircraft for which the volunteer was 

21 properly licensed and insured, unless the conduct 

22 constitutes a Federal crime of terrorism (as such 

23 term is defined in section 2332b(g)(5) of title 18, 

24 United States Code) or an act of domestic terrorism 

25 (as such term is defined in section 2331 of such 


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1 title), or unless the entity has been convicted of an 

2 offense under section 2339A of such title.’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (b)— 

4 (A) by amending the heading to read as 

5 follows: ‘‘CONCERNING RESPONSIBILITY OF

6 VOLUNTEERS’’; 

7 (B) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘Nothing’’; 

8 and 

9 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed 

12 to affect the liability for negligence of a volunteer of 

13 a nonprofit volunteer pilot organization that flies for 

14 public benefit with respect to amounts within the 

15 limits of liability insurance coverage that such volun16 teer is required to obtain pursuant to subsection 

17 (a)(4)(B) for liability protection under this section.’’; 

18 and 

19 (3) in subsection (c)— 

20 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘Nothing’’; 

21 and 

22 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a nonprofit vol25 unteer pilot organization that flies for public benefit, and 


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1 the staff, mission coordinators, officers, and directors 

2 (whether volunteer or otherwise) of such organization or 

3 a referring agency of such organization, shall not be liable 

4 with respect to harm caused to any person by a volunteer 

5 of such organization, while the volunteer is flying in fur6 therance of the purpose of the organization and is oper7 ating an aircraft for which the volunteer is properly li8 censed and has certified to such organization that such 

9 volunteer has in force insurance for operating such air10 craft. Such referring agency shall include, among others, 

11 any nonprofit organization that provides disaster relief 

12 services that place staff, volunteers, evacuees, goods, sup13 plies, or cargo on aircraft flights being coordinated by vol14 unteer pilot organizations in circumstances of disaster re15 sponse and relief.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. REPORT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL. 

17 (a) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Attorney General shall 

18 carry out a study on the availability of insurance to non19 profit volunteer pilot organizations that fly for public ben20 efit. In carrying out the study, the Attorney General shall 

21 make findings with respect to— 

22 (1) whether nonprofit volunteer pilot organiza23 tions are able to obtain insurance; 

24 (2) if no, then why; 


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1 (3) if yes, then on what terms such insurance 

2 is offered; and 

3 (4) if the inability of nonprofit volunteer pilot 

4 organizations to obtain insurance has any impact on 

5 the associations’ ability to operate. 

6 (b) REPORT.—After completing the study, the Attor7 ney General shall submit to Congress a report on the re8 sults of the study. The report shall include the findings 

9 of the study and any conclusions and recommendations 

10 that the Attorney General considers appropriate. 

Passed the House of Representatives July 17, 2006. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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