Summer’s Coming, But Confusion Reigns Over Federal Pool Safety Law

Summer’s Coming, But Confusion Reigns Over Federal Pool Safety Law

Nearly four months after the federal Pool and Spa Safety Act went into effect and with summer swimming season coming soon, many public pool owners still are unsure about what they need to do to comply with the law and unscrupulous businesses are trying to cash in on the confusion.

The law requires the owners of all public pools and spas – including those in hotels, apartment complexes, home-owners associations and other common areas – to install covers on pool drains. In the past 20 years, dozens of children have become sucked into or trapped underwater in the drains and died or been severely injured.

Maybe it’s because the law was launched in the cold of winter, when most of the country is hardly thinking of taking a dip, but there seems to be a lot of uncertainty over how to comply with the newish law.

There are about 300,000 public pools in the United States, mostly in warm weather states like California, Florida, Arizona, and Texas. However, only about 30 percent of pools currently comply with the law, officials said.

Since violating the law carries some hefty fines — up to $1.8 million per infraction plus criminal penalties, including additional fines and imprisonment – it makes sense for pool owners to make sure they are in compliance.
Requirements Spelled Out, Myths Debunked

Since there has been much misinformation spread about the requirements of the pool and spa safety act, federal officials are taking some time to spell out the rules.

All public pools must include approved safety drain covers, while single drain public pools must also install approved anti-entrapment devices, such as a Safety Vacuum Release System (SVRS), an automatic pump shut-off system, a gravity drainage system, or a suction-limiting vent system, officials said.

Privately owned pools and spas in the backyards of private homes are NOT covered by the law and are not required to install any drain covers. Reports have been received about pool maintenance companies quoted thousands of dollars to install the required covers, but officials said no such costs are warranted in order to comply with the law.

Other details just re-released include:

• Single drain public pools are NOT required to install multiple drains. The federal law only requires that single drain pools install approved anti-entrapment drain covers and use one of the other secondary layers of protection listed above.

• Pools do NOT need to be drained in order for drain covers to be installed. Doing so could waste billions of dollars of water.

• The law does NOT require public pools install new sumps.

• Dual drain pools only need to install approved safety drain covers to comply with the law, but PSC and Safe Kids strongly recommend all pools and spas, even private residential pools and spas, install both approved drain covers and an additional layer of protection.

Writing this from sunny San Diego (75 degrees and sunny, again!), we nonetheless feel compelled to remind the rest of the United States that summer swimming season is approaching fast. In another couple of months, millions of U.S. school children will don swimming trunks and bathing suits and dive into one of thousands of public pools.

Without the pool drain covers and other safety measures now mandated by the Pool and Spa Safety Act, these children are increased risk of death and severe injuries. Please take time today to double check your community pool and ask the owner of the pool if they have installed the safety devices. Let’s make the summer of 2009 safe and fun when it comes to children’s pool safety.