Legislative fallout from July's floods.
- July 2025 Central Texas floods.
From the Texas Tribune: A rigorous accreditation program inspired Texas’ camp reforms. Here’s what that process looks like.
Train staff on various emergencies, file emergency plans with local emergency personnel, maintain communication methods in case phone and internet services go down, and teach campers how to respond during crises.
“Texas has a good set of minimum practices. But often, those might be several pages. We have 266 standards that is a literal book of standards, as opposed to a couple of pages,” said Henry DeHart, interim president and CEO of the American Camp Association. “The state is now asking the question, should they be doing more?”
Large camp safety omnibus legislation that will likely pass the Legislature in the coming weeks folds in some of the standards required for ACA accreditation, including requiring camps to train their staff and campers on various emergencies and responses, to have a plan with local emergency personnel, and to maintain operable communication methods. Other requirements of the bill not included in ACA accreditation include removing cabins from operation if they are located on the floodplain, maintaining redundant internet connections, and establishing floodplain safety requirements.
Less than two months after rising floodwaters killed at least 138 people, including 27 campers and counselors at Camp Mystic, the Texas camp industry is largely hesitant to say how much work — and the costs — will go into meeting the requirements of any new legislation.
A good comparison point, however, is to examine the ACA’s lengthy, and at times, expensive accreditation process, according to multiple ACA-accredited Texas camps who spoke to The Texas Tribune. About 10% of Texas’ more than 700 youth and adult camps are accredited by their organization. Camp Mystic was not ACA accredited.
One of the main differences between the current state regulations and the standards for ACA accreditation is the level of detail required in the review process for emergency preparedness and overall safety. Currently, the state has 15 standards broken down to around 80 criteria compared to the over 200 standards for ACA, making for a more rigorous review process.
. . . For the most part, camps across the nation are regulated at the state level, and there is no consistency in how they are meant to operate. For example, one state may require helmets and life jackets on the water, while another may not. The only way to determine this is to consult the relevant state laws.
To become one of the approximately 375 youth camps licensed and regulated by the Texas Department of State Health Services, operators must undergo a background check and inspection. To maintain their licenses, camps must undergo an annual inspection with DSHS.
Adam Buuck, associate deputy commissioner for DSHS, told lawmakers during a camp safety hearing earlier this month that the state’s camp inspectors are primarily trained for sanitation inspections, not emergency plans.
The ACA accreditation program provides a set of national standards for health and safety for all camps. The third-party peer review process is entirely voluntary and has no regulatory authority.
__________
- Accreditation.
- HB 1 - Relating to youth camp and campground emergency preparedness; authorizing civil and other penalties; making appropriations.
- Health and Safety Code - Youth Camps.
- Texas Health and Human Services - Youth Camp Program.
- American Camp Association.
