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Senate File 356 - EnrolledAn Actlimiting civil liability for persons involved in
agricultural tourism.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Section 1. NEW SECTION. 461C.10 Limitation on liability.
The limitation on legal liability provided in this chapter
is in addition to any other limitation of legal liability
otherwise provided by law, including as provided in chapters
673 and 673A.
Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 673.6 Limitation on liability.
The limitation on legal liability provided in this chapter
is in addition to any other limitation of legal liability
otherwise provided by law, including as provided in chapters
461C and 673A.
Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 673A.1 Short title.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Iowa
Agricultural Tourism Promotion Act”.
Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 673A.2 Purpose.
1. The general assembly finds all of the following:
a. Agriculture is a vital part of this state’s economy,
culture, and history.
b. An increasing number of Iowans are removed from
day-to-day farm life and associated agricultural experiences.
c. Agricultural tourism provides a valuable opportunity
for the general public to understand farm life and associated
agricultural experiences.
d. Farming includes a number of hazards which cannot
be removed for the benefit of visitors to a farm without
detracting from the farm experience visitors receive, including
the daily experience of working on a farm.
2. The general assembly declares that uncertainty regarding
the potential liability associated with places on a farm and
the inherent risks of farming have a negative impact upon the
establishment and success of agricultural tourism and its
benefits to the people of this state.
Sec. 5. NEW SECTION. 673A.3 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
requires:
1. “Agricultural tourism farm” means a farm to which
-1-members of the public are invited to visit by or on behalf
of an agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional, for the purpose of allowing members of the public
to experience places on a farm and participate in farming
activities, regardless of whether a member of the public pays
for the visit.
2. “Agricultural tourism farmer” means a farmer who owns or
leases an agricultural tourism farm.
3. “Agricultural tourism professional” means a person who
is engaged in managing a visit by a member of the public to an
agricultural tourism farm, including any agricultural tourism
activity conducted on the premises of an agricultural tourism
farm, regardless of whether the person receives compensation.
4. a. “Agricultural tourist” means a person who enters
on to the premises of an agricultural tourism farm as a
visitor to experience places on the farm and participate in
farming activities pursuant to an invitation by or on behalf
of an agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional, regardless of whether the person provides
compensation in exchange for the visit.
b. “Agricultural tourist” does not mean any of the
following:
(1) An employee of, agent of, or person receiving
compensation from an agricultural tourism farmer, agricultural
tourism professional, or person engaged in farming the
agricultural tourism farm.
(2) (a) A family member of an agricultural tourism farmer,
agricultural tourism professional, or person engaged in farming
the agricultural tourism farm.
(b) As used in subparagraph division (a), “family member”
means a spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling, niece, or
nephew, or the spouse of a child, grandchild, parent, sibling,
niece, or nephew.
(3) A social guest of an agricultural tourism farmer,
agricultural tourism professional, or person engaged in farming
-2-the agricultural tourism farm.
5. “Claim” means a claim, counterclaim, cross-claim,
complaint, cross-complaint, or cause of action recognized by
the Iowa rules of civil procedure and brought in court on
account of allegation of an injury, loss, or death.
6. a. “Farm” means land, including buildings or other
structures, and improvements used to produce or process a farm
commodity, if all of the following apply:
(1) The land is owned or leased by a farmer.
(2) At least ten thousand dollars was generated from the
production of farm commodities produced on the land in the last
year.
b. “Farm” includes but is not limited to a farm field,
orchard, nursery, greenhouse, garden, elevator, seedhouse,
barn, warehouse, animal feeding operation structure, winery,
brewery, distillery, or any personal property located on the
land including machinery or equipment used in the production of
a farm commodity.
7. “Farm animal” means any of the following:
a. An animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, ovine,
or porcine species; farm deer as defined in section 170.1;
ostriches, rheas, or emus; turkeys, chickens, or other poultry;
fish or other aquatic organisms confined in private waters for
human consumption; or bees.
b. A horse, pony, mule, jenny, donkey, or hinny.
8. “Farm commodity” means a farm crop or farm animal
produced or maintained on a farm.
9. “Farm crop” means a plant used for food, animal feed,
fiber, or oil, including any of the following:
a. A forage or cereal plant, including but not limited to
alfalfa, barley, buckwheat, corn, flax, forage, millet, oats,
popcorn, rye, sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, wheat, and grasses
used for forage or silage.
b. Edible or ornamental produce, including but not limited
to fruit such as apples, cherries, peaches, pears, berries, and
-3-grapes; vegetables such as asparagus, broccoli, and carrots;
lentils; tubers; squashes and pumpkins; gourds; and flowers.
10. “Farmer” means a person who holds any of the following:
a. An ownership or leasehold interest in land used for
farming.
b. An equity interest in a business entity that holds land
for use in farming as any of the following:
(1) A family farm corporation, authorized farm corporation,
family farm limited partnership, limited partnership, family
farm limited liability company, authorized limited liability
company, family trust, or authorized trust, all as defined in
section 9H.1.
(2) A limited liability partnership as defined in section
486A.101.
11. “Farming” means to do any of the following:
a. Produce a farm commodity, including by doing any of the
following:
(1) Planting, nurturing, maintaining, inspecting,
exhibiting, harvesting, handling, storing, or moving a farm
crop.
(2) Producing, breeding, maintaining, handling, confining,
moving, inspecting, or exhibiting a farm animal.
b. Engage in an on-farm processing operation in which
the form or condition of a farm commodity originating from
the farm is changed and prepared or packaged for human use,
including but not limited to a dairy, creamery, winery,
brewery, distillery, cannery, bakery, butcher shop, smokehouse,
or tannery.
12. a. “Inherent risk of farming” means a danger or hazard
that is an integral part of being in a particular place on a
farm or participating in a specific farming activity, if the
danger or hazard would be reasonably foreseeable by a person
generally familiar with that type of farm or farming activity.
b. “Inherent risk of farming” includes but is not limited
to a condition or use of the land, including improvements, and
-4-any machinery, equipment, or tack, employed in the production
or maintenance of farm commodities on the land, the processing
of commodities on the same land as they were produced, and the
behavior of farm animals or other domestic or wild animals
which are present on the land.
13. “Person engaged in farming” means an individual
contributing physical labor or making management decisions
related to any of the following:
a. The production or maintenance of a farm commodity on a
farm.
b. The on-farm processing of a farm commodity produced or
maintained on that same farm.
Sec. 6. NEW SECTION. 673A.4 Limitation on liability —
inherent risk of farming.
1. Subject to the conditions of this chapter, an
agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm is not liable for any act or omission causing
injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural tourist if
all of the following apply:
a. The injury, loss, or death was caused while the
agricultural tourist was visiting the agricultural tourism
farm.
b. The act or omission that caused the injury, loss, or
death was associated with an inherent risk of farming.
2. Subject to the conditions of this chapter, an
agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming on the
agricultural tourism farm is not liable for any injury, loss,
or death suffered by an agricultural tourist, if any of the
following apply:
a. The agricultural tourist contributed to the injury,
loss, or death of that agricultural tourist or to another
agricultural tourist.
b. The agricultural tourist failed to comply with reasonable
-5-verbal or written instructions or warnings provided by
the agricultural tourism farmer, the agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming.
c. The injury, loss, or death occurred at a place where a
reasonable person would not enter as part of a visit to the
agricultural tourism farm. A legible and conspicuous notice
that the place is not part of a visit is sufficient to satisfy
this requirement.
Sec. 7. NEW SECTION. 673A.5 Limitation on liability —
affirmative defense.
1. In any claim alleging an act or omission causing
injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural tourist on
an agricultural tourism farm, it is an affirmative defense
that an agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm is not liable pursuant to section 673A.4.
2. The affirmative defense described in subsection 1 is in
addition to any other limitation of legal liability otherwise
provided by law, including as provided in chapters 461C and
673.
Sec. 8. NEW SECTION. 673A.6 Limitation on liability —
notice required.
1. As a condition of being able to plead an affirmative
defense as provided in section 673A.5, a notice of the inherent
risk of farming must have been provided to an agricultural
tourist prior to an alleged injury, loss, or death caused
by the agricultural tourism farmer, agricultural tourism
professional, or person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm.
2. A notice required by this section must have been posted
on the premises of an agricultural tourism farm. The notice
must have been posted in a conspicuous location where the
agricultural tourist was first allowed to enter the premises of
an agricultural tourism farm. The notice must have appeared in
black letters a minimum of one inch high and in the following
-6-form:
IOWA AGRICULTURAL TOURISM PROMOTION ACT
IOWA CODE CHAPTER 673A
You are visiting a working farm as a participant who is
either observing or contributing to the success of farming
activities. Under Iowa law you are assuming liability for any
hazard that you may encounter. A hazard includes inherent risk
of participating in a farming activity or disregarding written
or verbal instructions. Farming includes dangerous conditions
present on land and in structures, unpredictable behavior
of farm animals, dangers associated with the operation of
equipment and machinery, and potential wrongful acts of another
visitor. Be careful.
3. A notice required by this section must have been included
in any written contract entered into by the agricultural
tourist and either the agricultural tourism farmer or
agricultural tourism professional. A notice required by
this section must have been included in any written waiver
which must be signed and dated by an agricultural tourist.
The notice must have included the same language provided in
subsection 2 and printed in twelve point boldface type.
Sec. 9. NEW SECTION. 673A.7 Limitation on liability —
exceptions.
The limitation on liability provided in section 673A.4 and
the affirmative defense authorized under section 673A.5 do not
apply to the extent that all of the following conditions are
met:
1. An injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural
tourist was caused by the act or omission of an agricultural
tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism professional, or a
person engaged in farming on the agricultural tourism farm.
2. The act or omission described in subsection 1 was any of
the following:
a. Illegal.
b. Intentional.
-7- c. The result of willful misconduct, gross negligence or
incompetence amounting to such lack of care as to amount to
wanton neglect for the safety of another, or recklessness.
d. Due to intoxication by alcohol, a drug, or a combination
of such substances.
e. The result of a failure to notify an agricultural
tourist of a dangerous latent condition on the farm, including
a building or other structure, or equipment or machinery
regardless of whether it was operational, if the dangerous
latent condition was known or should have been known by
the agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional.
f. A condition or event existing at the agricultural
tourism farm that was not reasonably foreseeable by a person
generally familiar with farming, even though such condition or
farming activity would have been foreseeable at another type
of agricultural tourism farm.
______________________________
JAKE CHAPMANPresident of the Senate______________________________
PAT GRASSLEYSpeaker of the House I hereby certify that this bill originated in the Senate and is known as Senate File 356, Eighty-ninth General Assembly.______________________________
W. CHARLES SMITHSONSecretary of the SenateApproved _______________, 2021______________________________
KIM REYNOLDSGovernorda/ns/mb/mb
agricultural tourism.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Section 1. NEW SECTION. 461C.10 Limitation on liability.
The limitation on legal liability provided in this chapter
is in addition to any other limitation of legal liability
otherwise provided by law, including as provided in chapters
673 and 673A.
Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 673.6 Limitation on liability.
The limitation on legal liability provided in this chapter
is in addition to any other limitation of legal liability
otherwise provided by law, including as provided in chapters
461C and 673A.
Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 673A.1 Short title.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Iowa
Agricultural Tourism Promotion Act”.
Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 673A.2 Purpose.
1. The general assembly finds all of the following:
a. Agriculture is a vital part of this state’s economy,
culture, and history.
b. An increasing number of Iowans are removed from
day-to-day farm life and associated agricultural experiences.
c. Agricultural tourism provides a valuable opportunity
for the general public to understand farm life and associated
agricultural experiences.
d. Farming includes a number of hazards which cannot
be removed for the benefit of visitors to a farm without
detracting from the farm experience visitors receive, including
the daily experience of working on a farm.
2. The general assembly declares that uncertainty regarding
the potential liability associated with places on a farm and
the inherent risks of farming have a negative impact upon the
establishment and success of agricultural tourism and its
benefits to the people of this state.
Sec. 5. NEW SECTION. 673A.3 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
requires:
1. “Agricultural tourism farm” means a farm to which
-1-members of the public are invited to visit by or on behalf
of an agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional, for the purpose of allowing members of the public
to experience places on a farm and participate in farming
activities, regardless of whether a member of the public pays
for the visit.
2. “Agricultural tourism farmer” means a farmer who owns or
leases an agricultural tourism farm.
3. “Agricultural tourism professional” means a person who
is engaged in managing a visit by a member of the public to an
agricultural tourism farm, including any agricultural tourism
activity conducted on the premises of an agricultural tourism
farm, regardless of whether the person receives compensation.
4. a. “Agricultural tourist” means a person who enters
on to the premises of an agricultural tourism farm as a
visitor to experience places on the farm and participate in
farming activities pursuant to an invitation by or on behalf
of an agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional, regardless of whether the person provides
compensation in exchange for the visit.
b. “Agricultural tourist” does not mean any of the
following:
(1) An employee of, agent of, or person receiving
compensation from an agricultural tourism farmer, agricultural
tourism professional, or person engaged in farming the
agricultural tourism farm.
(2) (a) A family member of an agricultural tourism farmer,
agricultural tourism professional, or person engaged in farming
the agricultural tourism farm.
(b) As used in subparagraph division (a), “family member”
means a spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling, niece, or
nephew, or the spouse of a child, grandchild, parent, sibling,
niece, or nephew.
(3) A social guest of an agricultural tourism farmer,
agricultural tourism professional, or person engaged in farming
-2-the agricultural tourism farm.
5. “Claim” means a claim, counterclaim, cross-claim,
complaint, cross-complaint, or cause of action recognized by
the Iowa rules of civil procedure and brought in court on
account of allegation of an injury, loss, or death.
6. a. “Farm” means land, including buildings or other
structures, and improvements used to produce or process a farm
commodity, if all of the following apply:
(1) The land is owned or leased by a farmer.
(2) At least ten thousand dollars was generated from the
production of farm commodities produced on the land in the last
year.
b. “Farm” includes but is not limited to a farm field,
orchard, nursery, greenhouse, garden, elevator, seedhouse,
barn, warehouse, animal feeding operation structure, winery,
brewery, distillery, or any personal property located on the
land including machinery or equipment used in the production of
a farm commodity.
7. “Farm animal” means any of the following:
a. An animal belonging to the bovine, caprine, ovine,
or porcine species; farm deer as defined in section 170.1;
ostriches, rheas, or emus; turkeys, chickens, or other poultry;
fish or other aquatic organisms confined in private waters for
human consumption; or bees.
b. A horse, pony, mule, jenny, donkey, or hinny.
8. “Farm commodity” means a farm crop or farm animal
produced or maintained on a farm.
9. “Farm crop” means a plant used for food, animal feed,
fiber, or oil, including any of the following:
a. A forage or cereal plant, including but not limited to
alfalfa, barley, buckwheat, corn, flax, forage, millet, oats,
popcorn, rye, sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers, wheat, and grasses
used for forage or silage.
b. Edible or ornamental produce, including but not limited
to fruit such as apples, cherries, peaches, pears, berries, and
-3-grapes; vegetables such as asparagus, broccoli, and carrots;
lentils; tubers; squashes and pumpkins; gourds; and flowers.
10. “Farmer” means a person who holds any of the following:
a. An ownership or leasehold interest in land used for
farming.
b. An equity interest in a business entity that holds land
for use in farming as any of the following:
(1) A family farm corporation, authorized farm corporation,
family farm limited partnership, limited partnership, family
farm limited liability company, authorized limited liability
company, family trust, or authorized trust, all as defined in
section 9H.1.
(2) A limited liability partnership as defined in section
486A.101.
11. “Farming” means to do any of the following:
a. Produce a farm commodity, including by doing any of the
following:
(1) Planting, nurturing, maintaining, inspecting,
exhibiting, harvesting, handling, storing, or moving a farm
crop.
(2) Producing, breeding, maintaining, handling, confining,
moving, inspecting, or exhibiting a farm animal.
b. Engage in an on-farm processing operation in which
the form or condition of a farm commodity originating from
the farm is changed and prepared or packaged for human use,
including but not limited to a dairy, creamery, winery,
brewery, distillery, cannery, bakery, butcher shop, smokehouse,
or tannery.
12. a. “Inherent risk of farming” means a danger or hazard
that is an integral part of being in a particular place on a
farm or participating in a specific farming activity, if the
danger or hazard would be reasonably foreseeable by a person
generally familiar with that type of farm or farming activity.
b. “Inherent risk of farming” includes but is not limited
to a condition or use of the land, including improvements, and
-4-any machinery, equipment, or tack, employed in the production
or maintenance of farm commodities on the land, the processing
of commodities on the same land as they were produced, and the
behavior of farm animals or other domestic or wild animals
which are present on the land.
13. “Person engaged in farming” means an individual
contributing physical labor or making management decisions
related to any of the following:
a. The production or maintenance of a farm commodity on a
farm.
b. The on-farm processing of a farm commodity produced or
maintained on that same farm.
Sec. 6. NEW SECTION. 673A.4 Limitation on liability —
inherent risk of farming.
1. Subject to the conditions of this chapter, an
agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm is not liable for any act or omission causing
injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural tourist if
all of the following apply:
a. The injury, loss, or death was caused while the
agricultural tourist was visiting the agricultural tourism
farm.
b. The act or omission that caused the injury, loss, or
death was associated with an inherent risk of farming.
2. Subject to the conditions of this chapter, an
agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming on the
agricultural tourism farm is not liable for any injury, loss,
or death suffered by an agricultural tourist, if any of the
following apply:
a. The agricultural tourist contributed to the injury,
loss, or death of that agricultural tourist or to another
agricultural tourist.
b. The agricultural tourist failed to comply with reasonable
-5-verbal or written instructions or warnings provided by
the agricultural tourism farmer, the agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming.
c. The injury, loss, or death occurred at a place where a
reasonable person would not enter as part of a visit to the
agricultural tourism farm. A legible and conspicuous notice
that the place is not part of a visit is sufficient to satisfy
this requirement.
Sec. 7. NEW SECTION. 673A.5 Limitation on liability —
affirmative defense.
1. In any claim alleging an act or omission causing
injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural tourist on
an agricultural tourism farm, it is an affirmative defense
that an agricultural tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism
professional, or a person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm is not liable pursuant to section 673A.4.
2. The affirmative defense described in subsection 1 is in
addition to any other limitation of legal liability otherwise
provided by law, including as provided in chapters 461C and
673.
Sec. 8. NEW SECTION. 673A.6 Limitation on liability —
notice required.
1. As a condition of being able to plead an affirmative
defense as provided in section 673A.5, a notice of the inherent
risk of farming must have been provided to an agricultural
tourist prior to an alleged injury, loss, or death caused
by the agricultural tourism farmer, agricultural tourism
professional, or person engaged in farming the agricultural
tourism farm.
2. A notice required by this section must have been posted
on the premises of an agricultural tourism farm. The notice
must have been posted in a conspicuous location where the
agricultural tourist was first allowed to enter the premises of
an agricultural tourism farm. The notice must have appeared in
black letters a minimum of one inch high and in the following
-6-form:
IOWA AGRICULTURAL TOURISM PROMOTION ACT
IOWA CODE CHAPTER 673A
You are visiting a working farm as a participant who is
either observing or contributing to the success of farming
activities. Under Iowa law you are assuming liability for any
hazard that you may encounter. A hazard includes inherent risk
of participating in a farming activity or disregarding written
or verbal instructions. Farming includes dangerous conditions
present on land and in structures, unpredictable behavior
of farm animals, dangers associated with the operation of
equipment and machinery, and potential wrongful acts of another
visitor. Be careful.
3. A notice required by this section must have been included
in any written contract entered into by the agricultural
tourist and either the agricultural tourism farmer or
agricultural tourism professional. A notice required by
this section must have been included in any written waiver
which must be signed and dated by an agricultural tourist.
The notice must have included the same language provided in
subsection 2 and printed in twelve point boldface type.
Sec. 9. NEW SECTION. 673A.7 Limitation on liability —
exceptions.
The limitation on liability provided in section 673A.4 and
the affirmative defense authorized under section 673A.5 do not
apply to the extent that all of the following conditions are
met:
1. An injury, loss, or death suffered by an agricultural
tourist was caused by the act or omission of an agricultural
tourism farmer, an agricultural tourism professional, or a
person engaged in farming on the agricultural tourism farm.
2. The act or omission described in subsection 1 was any of
the following:
a. Illegal.
b. Intentional.
-7- c. The result of willful misconduct, gross negligence or
incompetence amounting to such lack of care as to amount to
wanton neglect for the safety of another, or recklessness.
d. Due to intoxication by alcohol, a drug, or a combination
of such substances.
e. The result of a failure to notify an agricultural
tourist of a dangerous latent condition on the farm, including
a building or other structure, or equipment or machinery
regardless of whether it was operational, if the dangerous
latent condition was known or should have been known by
the agricultural tourism farmer or agricultural tourism
professional.
f. A condition or event existing at the agricultural
tourism farm that was not reasonably foreseeable by a person
generally familiar with farming, even though such condition or
farming activity would have been foreseeable at another type
of agricultural tourism farm.
______________________________
JAKE CHAPMANPresident of the Senate______________________________
PAT GRASSLEYSpeaker of the House I hereby certify that this bill originated in the Senate and is known as Senate File 356, Eighty-ninth General Assembly.______________________________
W. CHARLES SMITHSONSecretary of the SenateApproved _______________, 2021______________________________
KIM REYNOLDSGovernorda/ns/mb/mb