Skiers and snowboarders visiting North Carolina’s mountains this winter will be subject to expanded safety regulations following legislation that took effect October 1, 2026. The changes introduce criminal penalties for certain violations, establish new responsibilities for families, and provide additional legal protections for ski area operators.

The legislation, known as Senate Bill 648 or Session Law 2026-49, was signed by Governor Josh Stein on July 7. It updates North Carolina’s existing winter sports safety laws, which date back to 1981, and applies to ski areas throughout the state, including Sugar Mountain, Beech Mountain, Appalachian Ski Mountain, Cataloochee, Hatley Pointe, and Sapphire Valley.

Among the changes are stronger requirements governing collisions between skiers. North Carolina already required skiers involved in collisions to provide their names and addresses, but the revised law specifies that anyone who knows, or reasonably should know, they were involved in a collision must remain nearby until providing that information to the other skier, ski patrol, or a ski area representative.

Exceptions are permitted when leaving is necessary to obtain medical treatment for someone injured in the collision or when remaining would pose a significant risk of injury. Skiers who leave under those circumstances must provide their identifying information as soon as practical. Violating these requirements is now a Class 1 misdemeanor.

The legislation also makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to use someone else’s lift ticket or season pass, lend a pass for unauthorized use, ski without a valid pass, or access closed trails and lifts. Ski area operators may also pursue civil damages for pass misuse or unauthorized access, with the law establishing damages equal to the regular price of a full season pass.

For families, the legislation introduces a requirement that parents or guardians properly supervise children under the age of 14 who participate in winter sports at a ski area. The statute does not define what constitutes proper supervision, leaving some uncertainty about how the provision will apply to children skiing independently.

The law also reinforces several familiar skier responsibilities, including yielding to downhill skiers, obeying posted warnings, remaining within trail boundaries, and using chairlift safety restraints as intended.

Beyond skier conduct, the legislation expands legal protections for ski resorts. Skiers are now explicitly deemed to understand and assume the inherent risks of skiing, including changing snow conditions, variations in terrain, collisions with other skiers, and impacts with certain natural and man-made obstacles.

The law also states that ski area operators complying with their statutory responsibilities are not liable for injuries arising from voluntary participation in skiing. Another provision establishes that liability waivers executed in connection with winter sports constitute an acknowledgment of the inherent risks identified in the statute.

These changes could affect how injury claims against North Carolina ski resorts are handled, although their application to individual cases will depend on the circumstances and judicial interpretation.

The legislation also exempts qualifying ski area volunteers, including volunteer patrollers, instructors, and mountain hosts, from certain state wage, overtime, youth employment, and recordkeeping requirements.

North Carolina’s revised ski safety law applies to offenses committed and causes of action arising on or after October 1, 2026. The complete legislation is available through the North Carolina General Assembly.