February 15, 2000 (4:30 p.m.)

SUMMARY OF AMENDMENTS SUBMITTED TO THE RULES COMMITTEE FOR H.R. 2366 - THE SMALL BUSINESS LIABILITY REFORM ACT

(in alphabetical order)

Berman #9 - Excepts any action for damages brought under copyright law from Title I of the Small Business Liability Reform Act; and, confirms the understanding under current law that the civil damages available under the copyright law are not identical or analogous to "punitive damage." - LATE

Conyers/Scott #4 - Narrows the definition of "small business" in Title I to include businesses which had revenues in each of the last two years of $5,000,000 or less; limits Title II's application to "small businesses"; limits Title I to product liability actions; revises the definition of Hate Crimes in Title I to mean "a crime in which the defendant intentionally selects a victim, or in the case of property crime, the property that is the object of the crime, because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation of any person"; creates True Two Way preemption in Title I by allowing the bill to create actions for punitive damages in states for which they do not exist today; Creates True State Opt-Out in Title I by allowing it to apply to statues as well as "initiatives of referendum," and by deleting the requirement that this be the only item described in such law; and, adds a similar State opt-out in Title II.

Hostettler #7 - Protects a manufacturer from liability where the true cause of the harm from the product resulted from the illegal or criminal use of the product.

Hostettler #8 - Protects those manufacturers who comply with all marketing laws in a state from suits arising in a different state based on the marketing in the first state.

Jackson-Lee #10 - Adds a new description of “hate crime” to the bill. LATE

Lofgren/McCarthy(NY)/DeLauro/DeGette/Carson #5 - Preserves several causes of action that are being used by cities and counties hold manufacturers of cheap Saturday-night specials and bad-apple gun dealers accountable by exempting those causes of action from the manufacturer and product seller titles of the bill.

Rogan/Hutchinson #1 - Replaces section 103 (limitations on punitive damages) to allow a court to exceed the punitive damage caps in the event it finds by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with specific intent to cause the type of harm for which the action was brought.

Moran (VA) #6 - Adds a definition of "punitive damages" to Title I to clarify that the term does not include civil penalties, civil fines, or treble damages assessed or enforced by a government agency under federal or state statute.

Watt #2 - Strikes the part of the bill which precludes federal court jurisdiction under section 1337 of title 28, U.S. Code.

Watt #3 - Strikes the part of the bill that would prorate noneconomic damages between each person responsible for the harm regardless of whether or not the person is a party to the action.

* Summaries derived from information submitted by the amendment sponsors.