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ISSA Urges Congress to Pass COVID-19 Liability Protections

ISSA has joined more than 580 organizations to urge members of the U.S. Congress to include “targeted and temporary” liability protections as they consider U.S. President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 relief package.

In a letter to congressional members, the signatories stated “for many who remain on the front lines and continue to serve our communities during this pandemic, the threat of unfair litigation continues to loom. In 2020, over US$23 million was spent by plaintiffs’ firms on COVID-19-related lawsuit advertisements, a clear indication that an influx of litigation is coming. As employers, educational institutions, and others answer President Biden’s very appropriate call for face coverings and other protective steps, they should not have to worry that their actions will invite costly and unnecessary litigation.”

Accordingly, the signatories urged Congress to include balanced liability relief provisions similar to the previous Congress’ SAFE TO WORK ACT (S. 4317) in any further COVID-19 relief legislation. “We believe that legislation in this space should ensure that unfair lawsuits will not hamper those who work to comply with applicable government guidelines. We also believe these protections should be limited in duration and scope in addition to preserving reasonable recourse for those harmed by truly bad actors.”

“The cleaning industry continues to work tirelessly to protect Americans from COVID-19 through the critical provision of cleaning and disinfecting products and services,” said ISSA Director of Government Affairs John Nothdurft. “As these workers and businesses keep our communities safe and healthy, ISSA members remain concerned that, despite doing their best to follow applicable state and federal guidelines, they may be forced to defend against an onslaught of frivolous lawsuits.”

ISSA recently updated its Summary of State-by-State Liability Protections resource to include an updated map indicating which U.S. states have passed legislation or executive orders related to COVID-19 liability protections or have introduced or expect such legislation. To learn more about the federal response to COVID-19, register for ISSA’s virtual 2021 Clean Advocacy Summit, March 30-31, as part of National Cleaning Week. For questions regarding ISSA advocacy, including COVID-19-related liability protections and the Clean Advocacy Summit, please contact John Nothdurft.