4 - Removal of civil liability barriers.

§ 4. Removal of civil liability barriers. 1. (a) Liability protection.    (1) A fire company or political subdivision, including a person acting  as  an  agent  thereof,  that acts reasonably in donating qualified fire  control or fire rescue equipment to a volunteer fire company  shall  not  be  liable  in  civil damages under any state law for personal injuries,  property damage, or death proximately caused after  the  donation  by  a  defect in the equipment.    (2)  Any  state or local agency, including a person acting as an agent  of  such  an  agency,  that  acts  reasonably   in   administering   the  distribution  of  qualified  fire  control or fire rescue equipment to a  volunteer fire company or political subdivision shall not be liable  for  civil  damages  under  any  state  law  for  personal injuries, property  damage, or death proximately caused after the distribution by  a  defect  in the equipment.    (b)   Exceptions  to  liability  protection.  Paragraph  (a)  of  this  subdivision shall not apply to a person or agency if:    (1) the defect that proximately causes the  injury,  damage,  or  loss  resulted  from  an  act  or  omission  of  the  person  or  agency, that  constitutes  malice,  gross  negligence,  recklessness,  or  intentional  misconduct;    (2)  the  person  or  agency is the manufacturer of the qualified fire  control or fire rescue equipment; or    (3) the person or agency modified or altered the  equipment  after  it  had  been  recertified  by  an  authorized  technician  as  meeting  the  manufacturer's specifications.    2. For the purposes of this section the following  words  and  phrases  shall have the following meanings:    (a)  "Person"  means  any  individual  and  any  governmental or other  entity.    (b) "Qualified fire control or rescue equipment" means fire control or  fire rescue  equipment  that  has  been  recertified  by  an  authorized  technician  as  meeting  the  manufacturer's specifications and has been  distributed through a state  or  local  agency  to  the  volunteer  fire  company.    (c) "Authorized technician" means a technician that has been certified  by  the manufacturer of fire control or fire rescue equipment to inspect  such equipment. The technician need not be  employed  by  the  state  or  local  agency administering the distribution of the fire control or fire  rescue equipment.