California Health and Safety Code 116033 – (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), persons providing …
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), persons providing aquatic instruction, including, but not limited to, swimming instruction, water safety instruction, water contact activities, and competitive aquatic sports, at a public swimming pool shall possess current certificates from an American Red Cross or YMCA of the U.S.A. lifeguard training program, or have equivalent qualifications, as determined by the department. In addition, these persons shall be certified in standard first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). All these persons shall meet these qualifications by January 1, 1991. Persons who only disseminate written materials relating to water safety are not persons providing aquatic instruction within the meaning of this section. The requirements of this section shall be waived under either of the following circumstances:
(1) When one or more aquatic instructors possessing the current certificates from an American Red Cross or YMCA of the U.S.A. lifeguard training program, or the equivalent, are in attendance continuously during periods of aquatic instruction.
Terms Used In California Health and Safety Code 116033
- department: means State Department of Health Services. See California Health and Safety Code 20
- Lifeguard services: includes the supervision of the safety of participants in water-contact activities by lifeguards who are providing swimming lessons, coaching or overseeing water-contact sports, or providing water safety instructions to participants when no other persons are using the facilities unless those persons are supervised by separate lifeguard services. See California Health and Safety Code 116028
- Public swimming pool: as used in this article , means any public swimming pool, bathhouse, public swimming and bathing place and all related appurtenances. See California Health and Safety Code 116025
(2) When one or more lifeguards meeting the requirements of Section 116028 are in attendance continuously during periods of aquatic instruction.
(b) If there is a staffing shortage where a local public agency pool operator, acting in good faith, is unable to maintain required staffing levels to maintain regular operating hours, the local public agency may use qualified lifeguard personnel, as defined in subdivision (c), to provide lifeguard services at a public swimming pool, if both requirements are met:
(1) The public agency is recognized by the United States Lifesaving Association (USLA) as a certified agency capable of administering an ongoing training program.
(2) The legislative body of the public agency makes a finding by resolution stating the use of qualified lifeguard personnel is needed for a time period no longer than 12 months in order to maintain regular operating hours of public swimming pools.
(c) As used in this section, “qualified lifeguard personnel” means a public agency lifeguard who has received and maintains USLA training from a certified agency, is certified in standard first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and has received additional public swimming pool-specific crossover training, provided by personnel certified by a national training agency, including treatment of spinal injuries, floatation device use techniques, pool extraction and extrication techniques, and submerged rescue techniques.
(Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 273, Sec. 2. (AB 1672) Effective January 1, 2023.)