Scouting: Prepared. For Life.  Yankee Clipper Council - Boy Scouts of America
Northeastern Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire		 Waving American Flag

The Tour Plan Replaces the Tour Permit Effective March 1, 2011,

What are currently known as local and national tour permits will be superseded by The Tour Plan.

*The online tour permit system will be suspended on March 1, 2011.

Yankee Clipper Council Tour Plan Policy

The Tour Plan Fillable Form is available on line http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/680-014_fillable.pdf
The Tour Plan FAQ page, http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/HealthandSafety/TourPlanFAQ.aspx

This update is the accumulation of work by a cross-functional team of volunteers and staff including the Health and Safety Support Committee, Council Solutions, Outdoor Program Group, and Risk Management Advisory Panels.

Units will now complete this form when planning for local, national, or international adventure. The Tour Plan is designed to help ensure the unit is properly prepared, that qualified and trained leadership is in place, and that the right equipment is available for the adventure.

What's different?

  1. The council is the reviewer of all tour plans; there is no regional review required.
  2. The tour plan consists of a tour planning worksheet to be completed by the unit/contingent. It is retained by the council and a tour plan is returned to the unit after processing.
  3. It's on standard 8.5 x 11-inch paper!
  4. There is a 21-day advance notice requested for units to submit the plan for your review.
  5. A single point of contact (not on the tour) for council use is included.
  6. Defined reasons/times when a tour plan must be submitted for council review:
    1.  Trips of 500 miles or more
    2. Trips outside of council borders not to a council-owned property
    3.  Trips to any national high-adventure base, national Scout jamboree, National Order of the Arrow Conference, or regionally sponsored event
    4. When conducting the following activities outside of council or district events:
      • Aquatics activities (swimming, boating, floating, scuba, etc.)
      •  Climbing and rappelling
      •  Orientation flights (process flying plan)
      •  Shooting sports
      •  Any activities involving motorized vehicles as part of the program (snowmobiles, boating, etc.)
    5.  At a council's request (allows council to add review times based on local needs)
  7. There is an updated Pledge of Performance.

Yankee Clipper Council Tour Plan Policy

Tour Plan for Scout Outings

Units complete this form when planning for local, national, or international adventure. The plan helps ensure the unit is properly prepared, that qualified and trained leadership is in place, and that the right equipment is available for the adventure. Filing a Tour Plan helps all parents understand the need for adequate supervision, proper certification, auto insurance requirements and appropriate behavior during an outing.  Filing Tour Plans assists in the liability protection of those unit leaders and other adults who have properly prepared for a fun and safe activity.

Reasons/times when a tour plan must be submitted for council review:
  1.  Trips of 500 miles or more
  2.  For all overnight trips less than 500 miles (exception: when the unit is pre-registered to attend a district or council approved activity including a Yankee Clipper Council summer camp, you are not required to submit a tour plan.)
  3.  Trips outside of our council borders.  This includes out-of-council summer camps or facilities.  (exception: no tour plan is required for travel to Wah-Tut-Ca Scout Reservation, located in Northwood, NH, if unit is pre-registered.)
  4.  Trips to any national high-adventure base, national Scout jamboree, National Order of the Arrow Conference, or regionally sponsored event
  5.  When conducting the following activities outside of council or district events:
    1.  Aquatics activities (swimming, boating, floating, scuba, etc.)
    2. Climbing and rappelling
    3. Orientation flights (process flying plan)
    4. Shooting sports
    5. Any activities involving motorized vehicles as part of the program (snowmobiles, boating, etc.)
  6.  For day trips, in which the distance to be traveled exceeds 10 miles measured from the unit’s regular meeting location and when volunteers will be transporting youth who are not members of the volunteer's family. (Exception: when the unit is pre-registered to attend a district or council approved activity, you are not required to submit a tour plan.)
  7.  For all day trips which will use vehicles transporting more than 15 passengers or vehicles requiring CDL licenses (Exception: when such vehicles and CDL licensed drivers are used to transport pre-registered Cub Scouts to a Yankee Clipper Council Day Camp, you are not required to submit a tour plan.).
  8.  At the Council’s request.

Tour Plan Guidelines

For any activity, the Tour Plan guidelines on the application should be reviewed by the unit leadership and committee each time.  See the Guide to Safe Scouting for more details.

Exceptions: Units pre-registering for district or council approved activities (including camp) do not need to file a Tour Plan.  These would also include district or council level meetings that involve the transportation of youth.  However, it is strongly recommended that the rules and regulations outlined on the Tour Plan application be reviewed prior to all outings.

Tour Plan Fillable Online Document (replaces current online process on MyScouting.org)

The National Health & Safety division has developed the online tour plan document as a fillable pdf document. It can be saved and emailed with the information typed in. Units may choose to save the document with the drivers and training data and just update as needed for the next time they need to file a tour plan. The tour plan can also be signed electronically by the unit as well as by the council and returned via email. 

Obtaining Tour Plan Documents

The Tour Plan worksheets are available at one the National BSA Web Sites at http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/680-014_fillable.pdf and will allow registered unit volunteers to complete tour plan and to easily submit the worksheets by email to wperez@bsamail.org at the Scout Service Center for review and approval. The Tour Plan can still be printed and completed on paper and submitted to council via fax or over-the-counter, if done in a timely manner.

Note:  This Tour Plan will replace the current National and Local Tour Permit process on March 1st. It is recommended that units that have information regarding drivers and insurance stored on MyScouting.org download the data before March 1, 2011.

 Tour Plans must be received in the Council Service center at least 21 days prior to the activity in order to insure proper clearance.  Be sure to fill out completely both the tour planning worksheet and the tour plan.   An approved tour plan will be returned to the unit’s Adult Volunteer Leader responsible for the trip.

Defective tour plans will be emailed back to the adult leader responsible for the trip, within a timely manner.  Remember – tour plans are due 21 days before the activity. The 21-day (in advance) filing requirement helps ensure that trips are well planned. Because of the large number of tour plans filed, late/rush filings cause delays for those who have filed promptly.  If there are concerns with a tour plan, the 21-day filing requirement allows time for correction, avoiding cancellation of the trip.

Common reasons for a defective tour plan could include incomplete forms, lack of two-deep leadership; training not completed, documented or expired; excessive daily travel; and not including vehicles with the capacity to carry the tour. 

A tour plan received after the activity is considered defective.  When a tour plan is received after the activity, the unit’s charter organization will be notified in writing by the Council Service Center, emphasizing the need to file a tour plan for safety and liability protection of the youth and adult members of its unit and the charter organization.

FAX Policy – If the unit files a tour plan via the fax machine, it must be arrive through the Service Center’s fax machine at (978) 373-9134 at least 21 days prior to the activity with a cover sheet that shows the email address of the unit’s adult leader responsible for leadership during the trip.  An approved tour plan will be returned to the unit’s Adult Volunteer Leader responsible for the trip.

Note: 90% of all Scouting injuries take place on a Scout outing.  Filing a Tour Plan helps all parents understand the need for adequate supervision, proper certification, auto insurance requirements and appropriate behavior during an outing.  Filing Tour Plans assists in the liability protection of those unit leaders and other adults who have properly prepared for a fun and safe activity.