Life Saver Pool Fence Systems has long been a leader in the water safety community. 

Independently and in partnership with national and local organizations, we work relentlessly to educate the public about the USA’s high drowning rates and the importance of implementing layers of protection for children in swimming pools.

To that end, Life Saver lends its full-throated support for the reauthorization of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act (VGB Act). Details about the Act and reauthorization are below.

VGB changed the way pools and spas are built and maintained; they are now specifically designed to prevent entrapments. We are proud to say that the law has been a wild success – since VGB was passed, entrapment deaths and injuries in public pools have been virtually eliminated.

But there is still work to be done.

In May 2024, VGB was introduced to Congress for reauthorization, with changes that will preserve and strengthen the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s ability to enforce it and also increase grant funding for water safety education. Education is still needed, particularly for homeowners with residential pools who may not be aware that their drains and covers are outdated and unsafe. See details below.

As of October 2024, the reauthorization bill has passed the House Energy & Commerce Committee unanimously and is hopefully headed to the House floor (HB 5202) and also is now pending in the Senate (SB 5155) with bi-partisan support.

Express your support for reauthorizing the VGB Act by contacting your Representatives and Senators. Not sure what to say? Use this template for your message.

Keep reading for details about what the original VGB Act does and why reauthorization is needed.

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December 19, 2007, after signing the Virginia Graeme Baker Act into law. In the Oval Office of the White House. From left to right: Alan Korn, Life Saver Pool Fence’s Government Relations & Advisory Counsel; President George W. Bush; Nancy Baker, mother of Virginia Graeme Baker; former Secretary of State James Baker.

December 19, 2007, after signing the Virginia Graeme Baker Act into law. From left to right: Alan Korn, Life Saver Pool Fence’s Government Relations & Advisory Counsel; President George W. Bush; Nancy Baker, mother of Virginia Graeme Baker; former Secretary of State James Baker.

What is the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act (VGB)?

The original VGB was passed in 2007 – the only water safety related bill ever to become federal law. The original bill made the CPSC the authority of this matter, and does five things:

  1. Bans the sale of unsafe, flat-topped pool drain covers that were responsible for horrific deaths via entrapments that caused drowning, disembowelment, or both.
  2. Requires public pools and spas to convert to safe, dome-topped drain covers.
  3. Requires new pool construction to use a safer two-drain system.
  4. Creates the national Pool Safely campaign.
  5. Creates a grant program for state, local, and tribal governments for money to be used in code enforcement and drowning prevention education. Only governments with laws requiring swimming pools be equipped with layers of protection and drain entrapment prevention are eligible.

What will reauthorization do? Why is it needed?

See the full text of the reauthorization bill here. Reauthorizing VGB will:

  1. Reaffirm the illegality of flat-topped pool drain covers and make it easier to go after entities that illegally sell them in online marketplaces.
  2. Continue educating the public about the dangers and illegality of flat-topped pool drain covers, encouraging residential pool owners to ensure their drain covers are upgraded to safe, VGB-compliant models. Too many homeowners are still not aware of the extreme danger presented by the outdated, flat-topped drain covers in their pools and spas.
  3. Strengthen the CPSC’s ability to take robust enforcement and education action by creating a management-level role to oversee these and other water safety efforts. Drowning is the leading cause of death for kids age 1-4 and the #2 cause of unintentional injury death for kids age 5-14. The CPSC’s infrastructure and resources should reflect the seriousness of this public safety issue.
  4. Expand the grant program to allow nonprofit organizations that work toward pool and spa safety and drowning prevention to be eligible to apply for funding, in addition to governments. These organizations are already dedicated solely to this work; extra funds will allow them to do so much more.

Who was Virginia Graeme Baker?

Virginia Graeme Baker was the granddaughter of former White House Chief of Staff and former Secretary of State James Baker. Able to swim since the age of three, she participated in her local swim and dive team.

In June of 2002, a flat-topped drain in a hot tub trapped her underwater. Her mother, Nancy Baker, was unable to free her, and Graeme suffered a fatal drowning. She was seven years old.

The suction of the hot tub was so strong that it took two men to remove Graeme’s body from the drain; the force it took shattered the drain cover.

Her mother became an advocate for pool and spa safety, joining forces with the families of children who had suffered similar fates. Their tragedies were channeled into the effort of getting the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act signed into law in December 2007.