BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 2127
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          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 2127 (Cooley)
          As Amended  April 1, 2014
          Majority vote

           EDUCATION           5-2                                         
           
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          |Ayes:|Buchanan, Gonzalez,       |     |                          |
          |     |Nazarian, Weber, Williams |     |                          |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |Nays:|Olsen, Chávez             |     |                          |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
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           SUMMARY  :   Makes legislative findings and declarations relating  
          to head injuries sustained by high school pupil-athletes,  
          particularly those who play football; prohibits high school and  
          middle school football teams from conducting more than two  
          full-contact practices, as defined, per week during the  
          preseason and regular season, as defined; completely prohibits  
          full-contact practice during the off-season, as defined; and  
          prohibits an athlete suspected of having sustained a concussion  
          from returning to the athletic activity until the athlete has  
          completed a return-to-play protocol, as specified.

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Requires the governing school board of each school district to  
            have control of and be responsible for all aspects of the  
            interscholastic athletic policies, programs, and activities in  
            its district.


          2)Permits governing boards of school districts to enter into  
            associations or consortia with other governing boards for the  
            purpose of governing regional or statewide interscholastic  
            athletic programs by permitting the schools under their  
            jurisdictions to enter into a voluntary association with other  
            schools for the purpose of enacting and enforcing rules  
            relating to eligibility for, and participation in,  
            interscholastic athletic programs among and between schools.










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          3) Defines interscholastic athletics as those policies,  
            programs, and activities that are formulated or executed in  
            conjunction with, or in contemplation of, athletic contests  
            between two or more schools, either public or private.


          4)Requires each high school sports coach to complete a coaching  
            education program developed by his or her school district, or  
            the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), that meets  
            the guidelines set forth by the High School Coaching Education  
            and Training Program (HSCETP).  

          5)Requires a school district that elects to offer an athletic  
            program to comply with all of the following:

             a)   Remove an athlete who is suspected of sustaining a  
               concussion or head injury in an athletic activity from the  
               activity for the remainder of the day.


             b)   Prohibit an athlete who is suspected of sustaining a  
               concussion or head injury in an athletic activity from  
               returning to the activity until he or she is evaluated by a  
               licensed health care provider, trained in the management of  
               concussions, acting within the scope of his or her  
               practice.


             c)   Prohibit the return of the athlete to the activity until  
               he or she receives written clearance to return to the  
               activity from that licensed health care provider.  


             d)   Require, annually, a concussion and head injury  
               information sheet be signed and returned by the athlete and  
               the athlete's parent or guardian prior to the start of the  
               athlete's season of practice or competition.  


          6)Exempts an athlete engaging in an athletic activity during the  
            regular school day, or as part of a physical education course,  
            from these requirements. 










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           FISCAL EFFECT  :  None.  This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the  
          Legislative Counsel.

           COMMENTS  :  In 2011, the National Football League (NFL) limited  
          the total number of full-contact practices to 14 for the year  
          with 11 of those practices conducted during the first 11 weeks  
          of the season (a maximum of one per week), with no full-contact  
          practices during the off-season.  Similarly, 19 states have  
          banned off-season full-contact high school football practices,  
          including Texas, which is widely seen as the mecca of high  
          school football.  In instituting such limitations, the NFL and  
          state Legislatures have cited an effort to reduce exposure to  
          possible brain trauma from hits to the head.  This bill  
          addresses the repetitive concussive trauma and follows the lead  
          of the NFL, by limiting the number of full-contact practices in  
          which a high school football player can participate. In so  
          doing, this bill seeks to minimize the opportunities for trauma.

          Return-To-Play Protocol:  The Return-To-Play Protocol, as  
          described by the United States' Center for Disease Control and  
          Prevention (CDC) consists of five "steps" following a complete  
          physical and the absence of concussion symptoms for a period of  
          24 hours.  The steps progress from light aerobic exercise for  
          five to ten minutes, to moderate exercise, to non-contact but  
          more intense exercise, a reintegration into full practice, and  
          finally a return to play.  The CDC emphasizes the need for each  
          of these steps to be monitored for a return of concussion  
          symptoms.  This bill would prohibit an athlete who is suspected  
          of sustaining a concussion from returning to the athletic  
          activity in which he or she suffered the concussion until the  
          athlete has completed a return-to-play protocol of not less than  
          seven days in duration.  This bill makes no reference to any  
          particular protocol, but instead urges the CIF to work with the  
          American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Society  
          for Sports Medicine to develop and adopt rules and protocols to  
          implement the protocol.


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Jill Rice / ED. / (916) 319-2087 


                                                                FN: 0003174









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