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Klobuchar Welcomes Signing of Landmark Pool Safety Legislation

Bill contains key Klobuchar amendments

December 19, 2007

Washington – Senator Amy Klobuchar said today she was pleased that President Bush has signed into law legislation she helped write that will improve safety in the nation’s swimming pools. President Bush signed the “Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act of 2007,’’ which Klobuchar helped shepherd through the Senate and which contains two key amendments authored by the Minnesota Senator.

Klobuchar took a personal interest in the issue of dangerous swimming pool drains after a horrific accident in the summer of 2007 when six-year-old Abigail Taylor of Edina, Minnesota, was partly disemboweled by the powerful suction of a wading pool drain.

“Parents shouldn’t have to worry about their children getting stuck in a drain when they go to the local pool,’’ Klobuchar said. “This little girl’s courage inspired change in Washington.”

After consulting the Taylor family and national child safety experts, Klobuchar wrote two crucial amendments to the pool safety legislation. One made tough new safety standards retroactive to existing pools that are intended for public use and the other required public pools with single drains to install the latest drain safety technology.