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2025 · Regular session · Senate bill
SB1119
SB1119 gives water-park owners and operators a limited protection against injury claims when they display the required warning—but preserves liability for specified safety failures and intentional harm.
Official caption: Relating to liability of a water park entity for injuries arising from certain activities.
Official report lists Senate author(s): Hughes. This does not identify sponsors or amendment drafters.
Bill explanation published · Version and amendment review scope is stated below · Individual amendment records may not be separately annotated.
Bill highlights
Selected points from the published explanation. Follow each point to its source-linked context; conditions and limits may matter.
- SB1119 gives water-park owners and operators a limited protection against injury claims when they display the required warning—but preserves liability for specified safety failures and intentional harm.
- The law covers commercial property designed for swimming, bathing or other water recreation, including pools, water-play areas, slides, splash pads, spray grounds and lazy rivers.
- To use the liability limit, the owner or operator must post and maintain the law’s prescribed warning in a clearly visible place at or near the entrance, and it must be posted when the injury occurs.
- The exceptions are substantial: The protection does not limit liability for an injury proximately caused by the entity’s negligence concerning park, activity or participant safety; by a potentially dangerous park condition the entity knew or reasonably should have known about; or by its failure to train, or improper training of, an employee actively involved in the park or an activity.
What does it do?
SB1119 gives water-park owners and operators a limited protection against injury claims when they display the required warning—but preserves liability for specified safety failures and intentional harm. Signed May 21, 2025, it took effect that day. It applies only to causes of action that accrue on or after that date, not simply every lawsuit filed afterward. Final law, sections 1–3; Official history.
The law covers commercial property designed for swimming, bathing or other water recreation, including pools, water-play areas, slides, splash pads, spray grounds and lazy rivers. Associated changing rooms, showers, hot tubs, saunas, spectator seating, picnic areas and retail services are included. Water-park activities include recreational or educational activities there. A covered participant is a visitor or activity participant other than an employee of the water-park entity. Covered injury is defined broadly to include bodily injury, emotional distress, death, property damage and other loss arising from attendance or participation. Final law, section 75D.001.
To use the liability limit, the owner or operator must post and maintain the law’s prescribed warning in a clearly visible place at or near the entrance, and it must be posted when the injury occurs. The warning states that Texas law limits liability for injuries or death resulting from attendance or participation. The statute supplies the exact wording; a general “swim at your own risk” sign is not the prescribed text. Final law, sections 75D.002(a) and 75D.003.
The exceptions are substantial. The protection does not limit liability for an injury proximately caused by the entity’s negligence concerning park, activity or participant safety; by a potentially dangerous park condition the entity knew or reasonably should have known about; or by its failure to train, or improper training of, an employee actively involved in the park or an activity. It also does not limit liability for an injury the entity intentionally causes. “Proximately caused” is the statute’s legal causation requirement; posting a sign does not erase these exceptions. Final law, section 75D.002(b).
What changed along the way?
The act adds a new Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 75D with definitions, a warning-dependent liability limit and explicit exceptions. It is not a complete immunity for accidents and does not change the listed exceptions into a requirement to prove gross negligence. The introduced, Senate committee, engrossed, House committee and enrolled operative provisions match. The official amendment index lists no amendments. Introduced bill; All versions; Amendment index; Final law.
For the full amendment record, open the official amendment index.
Official bill versions
Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.
Who could benefit—and who could bear the costs?
Qualifying owners and operators gain a statutory defense for claims within the limit, while injured participants may face that defense when none of the exceptions applies. Whether a particular claim survives depends on the facts and the legal requirements; the law does not promise either side a result. The sign requirement also gives visitors notice of the liability limit, but is not a substitute for safe conditions or proper training. Final law.
The February 28 fiscal note anticipates no significant state or local fiscal implication and assumes costs can be absorbed using existing resources. It does not estimate private insurance savings, lost compensation, litigation expenses or the cost of signs. Those effects cannot be assigned a dollar amount from this fiscal note. Fiscal note.
Official sources
- Bill history and latest recorded action
- Bill versions, analyses and fiscal notes
- Action history and votes
- Amendment index
Catalog report retrieved 2026-10-25. Check the official record for corrections or later changes.
