Representatives from Massachusetts gyms and youth organizations met at the State House on Friday to argue against a proposed law that would require challenge courses and climbing walls — such as the rock wall at Boston University’s Fitness and Recreation Center — to meet the same safety standards as amusement park rides, saying the new measures are too costly.
Challenge course and rock climbing wall operators said the proposed regulations would require them to undergo the same certification process of a Ferris wheel operator.
Massachusetts Camping Association spokesman Eric Arnold told the panel that staff training would cost three or four times more than it does now if the state’s new training and certification standards are implemented.
“The implications would make small organizations struggle,” he said.
Association of Challenge Course Technology spokeswoman Kelly McMellan said her company should not have to pay the added fees to train and certify personnel because her company’s standards for safety and certification already exceed the expectations outlined by the state. Additional state-mandated standards would be “superfluous,” she said.
In addition to the cost of state certifications and training, climbing wall and challenge course facilities would also face a rise in insurance costs because of their classification with amusement parks, McMellan said.
Owners of climbing wall facilities would have to furnish proof of property damage and injury insurance in the minimum amount of $1 million per occurrence, a main point of contention for groups opposing the bill.
The extra costs facing the owners of rock climbing wall and challenge course sites would possibly mean cutbacks in equipment and personnel availability.
The majority of the 50 people present at the hearing represented nonprofit youth and adventure programs and facilities such as the Boy Scouts of America, Outward Bound, YMCA and Project Adventure, Inc.
Supporters of the legislation say despite the costs, the bill is a necessary step.
“This is an unregulated industry that in the interest of the public, safety needs to have some regulation and oversight,” Kelly Nantel, spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety, said in a Jan. 18 Boston Globe article.
Project Adventure, Inc. spokesman Rich Klinescheck questioned the need for the legislation, citing an ACCT safety study of the risks of Massachusetts challenge courses.
“The risk is comparable to [that of] insurance salesmen,” he said.
YMCA Massachusetts spokesman Michael Cahill said the regulations would force his organization to cut back on its rock climbing training for youth, which he called “experiential educational curriculum.”
Boys and Girls Club of America Massachusetts spokesman Jim Wyarti said maintaining facilities — including a new indoor challenge course — is already costly enough. He said the nonprofit organization’s budget was balanced by less than $1,000 this year.
“A dollar is 100 pennies to us,” he said.
Representatives of Boston University’s Fitness and Recreation Center, which houses a rock-climbing wall, were not available for comment on the possible implications of the regulations for BU students and facilities.