Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HB547 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	HB547INTRODUCED
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3	3	HB547
4	4	QKAX415-1
5	5	By Representative Kiel
6	6	RFD: Education Policy
7	7	First Read: 08-Apr-25
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12	12	5 QKAX415-1 02/04/2025 ZAK (L)ZAK 2024-2657
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14	14	First Read: 08-Apr-25
15	15	SYNOPSIS:
16	16	This bill would prohibit public K-12 school
17	17	athletic teams from participating in post-season
18	18	athletic events against nonpublic school athletic
19	19	teams.
20	20	This bill would prohibit public K-12 schools
21	21	from being members of athletic associations that
22	22	prohibit or discourage member schools from
23	23	participating in certain athletic events; other than
24	24	post-season athletic events.
25	25	This bill would also prohibit public K-12
26	26	schools from competing in athletic events against other
27	27	schools that belong to a separate athletic association
28	28	unless that athletic association meets certain minimum
29	29	criteria.
30	30	A BILL
31	31	TO BE ENTITLED
32	32	AN ACT
33	33	Relating to public K-12 schools; to prohibit
34	34	competition between public and nonpublic K-12 school athletic
35	35	teams in post-season athletic events; to prohibit membership
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63	63	28 HB547 INTRODUCED
64	64	Page 2
65	65	teams in post-season athletic events; to prohibit membership
66	66	in certain athletic associations; and to prohibit athletic
67	67	competition against certain schools .
68	68	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
69	69	Section 1.Notwithstanding Section 2, a public K-12
70	70	school athletic team may not compete against or otherwise play
71	71	a nonpublic school athletic team in any post-season
72	72	championship program or other interscholastic athletic event
73	73	occurring after the sport's regular season.
74	74	Section 2. (a) For the purposes of this section, the
75	75	term "athletic association" means any association of public or
76	76	nonpublic K-12 schools that acts as an organizing,
77	77	sanctioning, scheduling, or rulemaking body for
78	78	interscholastic athletic events in which students in this
79	79	state participate.
80	80	(b) A public K-12 school may not be a member of an
81	81	athletic association that prohibits, or discourages through
82	82	the use of a communication, policy, procedure, ranking, or
83	83	other instrument designed to discourage, its member schools
84	84	from competing or participating in a contest against or
85	85	otherwise engaging in an athletic event with a nonmember
86	86	school, including, but not limited to, a scrimmage game,
87	87	jamboree, or match.
88	88	(c) A public K-12 school may not be a member of an
89	89	athletic association that unreasonably withholds its approval
90	90	or support of another athletic association's application to
91	91	become an affiliate member of the National Federation of State
92	92	High School Associations within this state.
93	93	(d) A public K-12 school may not compete or participate
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123	123	(d) A public K-12 school may not compete or participate
124	124	in a contest against or otherwise engage in an athletic event
125	125	with a school that is not a member of the athletic association
126	126	in which the public K-12 school is a member unless the
127	127	nonmember school is a member of an athletic association that
128	128	does all of the following:
129	129	(1) Mandates a preparticipation physical examination
130	130	for all students before they may participate in tryouts,
131	131	practices, or interscholastic athletic events.
132	132	(2) Implements a comprehensive concussion management
133	133	and return-to-play protocol that includes all of the
134	134	following:
135	135	a. The dissemination of an informational sheet on the
136	136	risks of concussions to a parent or legal guardian of a
137	137	student participating in an athletic event before the program
138	138	starts.
139	139	b. The immediate removal and evaluation of a student
140	140	who shows symptoms of a concussion during an athletic event by
141	141	a qualified health care provider.
142	142	c. A prohibition against a student participating in an
143	143	athletic event after being diagnosed with a concussion until a
144	144	qualified health care provider medically clears the student to
145	145	return to participation.
146	146	(3) Complies with rules established by the National
147	147	Federation of State High School Associations.
148	148	(4) Complies with the competition rules set by the
149	149	athletic association that governs the public K-12 school.
150	150	(5) Restricts participation in competition to high
151	151	school athletes who are under 19 years of age on August 1 of
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181	181	school athletes who are under 19 years of age on August 1 of
182	182	that school year.
183	183	(6) Uses only game officials who are certified through
184	184	assessments conducted in accordance with the National
185	185	Federation of State High School Associations' rules and
186	186	procedures.
187	187	(7) Complies with all other requirements under state
188	188	laws, including, but not limited to, Chapter 30D of Title 16,
189	189	Code of Alabama 1975.
190	190	(f) Nothing in this section shall be construed to do
191	191	either of the following:
192	192	(1) Influence the membership status or governance of
193	193	nonpublic schools that are members of an athletic association
194	194	that is primarily composed of public K-12 schools.
195	195	(2) Affect the autonomy granted to nonpublic K-12
196	196	schools under the laws of this state.
197	197	Section 3. This act shall become effective on October
198	198	1, 2025.
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