BREASTFEEDING IN PUBLIC PLACES                                                                 S.B. 674:

                                                                                                      FLOOR SUMMARY

Senate Bill 674 (as reported without amendment)

Sponsor:  Senator Rebekah Warren

Committee:  Judiciary

CONTENT

The bill would create the "Breastfeeding Antidiscrimination Act" to do the following:

-- Prohibit the denial of full and equal enjoyment of a place of public accommodation or public service to a woman because she was breastfeeding.

-- Prohibit publishing a statement or notice indicating that a woman's full enjoyment of a place of public accommodation or public service would be refused, or that her patronage or presence would be unwelcome, because she was breastfeeding. 

-- Establish a civil remedy for a violation of the proposed Act.

Specifically, a person with control over a public accommodation or public service could not deny the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of a place of public accommodation or public service to a woman because she was breastfeeding a child.  Such a person also could not print, circulate, post, mail, or otherwise cause to be published a statement or notice indicating that the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of a place of public accommodation or public service would be refused, withheld from, or denied a woman because she was breastfeeding a child or that a woman's patronage of, or presence at, a place of public accommodation was objectionable, unwelcome, unacceptable, or undesirable because she was breastfeeding a child.

A person alleging a violation of the proposed Act could bring a civil action in a court of appropriate jurisdiction for appropriate injunctive relief, actual damages, or presumed damages of $200, or both injunctive relief and actual or presumed damages.  The court also could award to the complainant all or a portion of the costs of litigation, if it determined that the award was appropriate.

                                                                            Legislative Analyst:  Patrick Affholter

FISCAL IMPACT

The bill would have a minor, perhaps negligible, impact on the civil caseload of local courts.  There are no data to indicate how many additional cases could result from actions brought under the proposed Breastfeeding Antidiscrimination Act.  It is unlikely that the magnitude of any potential increase would be great enough to require increased judicial resources.

Date Completed:  12-11-13                                                 Fiscal Analyst:  Dan O'Connor

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.