HB 2279 Arizona House · 57th Legislature - Second Regular Session

commercial river outfitters; limited liability

HB 2279 protects commercial river outfitters operating in Grand Canyon National Park from liability for injuries or deaths caused by inherent risks of river trips, such as rapids or natural hazards. It allows outfitters to require participants to sign liability waivers for ordinary negligence, making these waivers legally binding. However, outfitters remain liable for gross negligence, intentional acts, or willful misconduct. The bill directly affects both outfitters (defined as federally permitted entities offering guided trips) and participants who sign these waivers before embarking on Grand Canyon river trips.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Mar 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Jun 2026
Signed into Law
Jun 2026
Introduced Jan 20, 2026 Signed Jun 19, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

House Engrossed Version (02/24/2026) Chaptered Version · 2 edits
MINOR
The bill was formally enacted into law after being signed by the Governor, changing its status from a proposed House bill to a Chaptered law. The substantive policy content regarding commercial river outfitter regulations remains unchanged, with the only modifications being the addition of official approval dates and the reformatting of the document header.
Scope change
None; the bill's scope and applicability remain identical to the original version.
TIMELINE

Added the Governor's approval date (June 19, 2026) and the Secretary of State filing date (June 22, 2026) to finalize the law.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document title from 'House Bill 2279' to 'Chapter 196' to reflect its official enactment status.

Floor votes · Senate Jun 9, 2026 · House Feb 24, 2026

How they voted

290
Passed · 1 other
Total votes 30
Jun 9, 2026
D Democratic13
13 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican17
16 Yea 1
94% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
14
Key actions
6
Committee
2
Amendments
1
Jun 19, 2026
Signed into law
Signed by Governor
executive
Jun 9, 2026
Upper · Passed
PASSED
upper
Mar 25, 2026
Upper · Passed
DP
upper
Feb 24, 2026
Lower · Passed
PASSED
lower
Feb 23, 2026
Lower · Passed
DPA
lower
Jan 27, 2026
Lower · Passed
DP
lower
1 primary · 4 co-sponsors

Sponsors