Volunteer Organization Protection Act of 2017

To amend the Volunteer Organization Protection Act of 1997, to provide for liability protection for organizations or entities. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Volunteer Organization Protection Act of 2017 2. Liability protection for organization or entity The Volunteer Protection Act of 1997, Public Law 105–19 (1) In section 3(a), by inserting after relating to volunteers or volunteer nonprofit organizations (2) In section 3(b), in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting after against a volunteer or a volunteer nonprofit organization (3) In section 4, in the heading, by inserting and volunteer nonprofit organizations volunteers (4) In section 4, by amending subsection (c) to read as follows: (c) Liability protection for organization or entity (1) No volunteer nonprofit organization shall be liable for harm caused by an act or omission of a volunteer on behalf of the organization unless— (A) the organization would be liable for the act or omission under generally applicable laws governing the direct or vicarious liability of organizations; and (B) the organization itself has expressly authorized the specific conduct constituting the act or omission. (2) Notwithstanding section 4(c)(1), no volunteer nonprofit organization shall be liable for harm caused by an act or omission of the organization or of a volunteer acting on behalf of the organization if— (A) the organization or the volunteer engaged in the act or omission at the request of or pursuant to an authorization by a State or the United States or any agency or subdivision of either; and (B) either— (i) the requesting or authorizing governmental entity would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages if it had engaged in the acts or omissions itself or through employees or independent contractors; or (ii) the governmental employee, agent, or contractor who engaged in the acts would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages by virtue of immunity extended to individual governmental actors. (3) Except as provided in paragraphs (1) and (2), nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the liability of any nonprofit organization or governmental entity with respect to harm caused to any person. . (5) In section 4(d), by striking paragraph (2) and redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively. (6) In section 4(e), in paragraph (1), by adding the following after the period: Punitive damages may not be awarded against a volunteer nonprofit organization in an action brought for harm based on the action of a volunteer acting within the scope of the volunteer’s responsibilities to the organization unless the claimant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the organization itself expressly authorized the volunteer’s action and did so with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of the individual harmed. (7) In section 4(f), by inserting or of a volunteer nonprofit organization liability of a volunteer (8) In section 5— (A) in subsection (a)— (i) by inserting or a volunteer nonprofit organization action against a volunteer (ii) by inserting or volunteer nonprofit organization liability of the volunteer (B) in subsection (b)— (i) in paragraph (1), by inserting or a volunteer nonprofit organization who is a volunteer (ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting or volunteer nonprofit organization who is a volunteer (9) In section 6, by adding at the end the following: (7) Volunteer nonprofit organization An entity is a volunteer nonprofit organization (A) A nonprofit organization that conducts substantially all of its activities solely through the actions of volunteers or of independent contractors. A nonprofit organization is conclusively presumed to be a volunteer nonprofit organization (B) A nonprofit organization is presumed to be a volunteer nonprofit organization (C) A nonprofit organization that has fewer than 50 employees, that has annual gross receipts of less than $200,000, and that is any of the following: (i) A public charity that is exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. (ii) A private foundation that is exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code but that does not qualify as a public charity. (iii) A social welfare organization that is exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(4) of the internal revenue code. (8) A volunteer nonprofit organization acts itself itself .

Summary: Volunteer Organization Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 to expand liability protections to volunteer nonprofit organizations for harm caused by an act or omission of a volunteer on behalf of the organization. The bill prohibits such liability protections from applying if the organization: (1) would be liable under laws governing the direct or vicarious liability of organizations, and (2) expressly authorized the specific conduct constituting the act or omission. The bill bars such an organization from liability for harm caused by the organization, or a volunteer acting on its behalf, if the act or omission was at the request of, or pursuant to an authorization by, a state, the United States, or another governmental subdivision, provided that: (1) the requesting or authorizing governmental entity would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages if it had engaged in the acts or omissions itself or through employees or independent contractors; or (2) the governmental employee, agent, or contractor would have been immune either from suit or from liability in damages by virtue of immunity extended to individual governmental actors. The bill prohibits punitive damages from being awarded against a volunteer nonprofit organization for the actions of a volunteer within the scope of the volunteer's responsibilities to the organization unless the claimant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the organization itself expressly authorized the volunteer's action with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of the individual harmed.