BILL ANALYSIS Ó
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 309|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 309
Author: Price (D), et al.
Amended: 9/9/13
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS, PROF. & ECON. DEVELOP. COMM. : 9-1, 4/29/13
AYES: Price, Emmerson, Block, Corbett, Galgiani, Hernandez,
Hill, Padilla, Yee
NOES: Wyland
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 5-0, 5/13/13
AYES: De León, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters, Gaines
SENATE FLOOR : 36-3, 5/28/13
AYES: Beall, Berryhill, Block, Calderon, Cannella, Corbett,
Correa, De León, DeSaulnier, Emmerson, Evans, Fuller, Gaines,
Galgiani, Hancock, Hernandez, Hill, Hueso, Jackson, Knight,
Lara, Leno, Lieu, Liu, Monning, Nielsen, Padilla, Pavley,
Price, Roth, Steinberg, Torres, Walters, Wolk, Wright, Yee
NOES: Anderson, Huff, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not available
SUBJECT : State Athletic Commission
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill extends the operation of the California
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
2
State Athletic Commission (CSAC) until 2016, which regulates
professional and amateur boxing, kickboxing, and martial arts
contests and exhibitions; enacts fee increases and spending
restrictions to ensure the financial sustainability and
appropriate operation of CSAC; deletes the training gymnasium
license and creates a professional trainer's license; and
expands CSAC's authority to delegate and revoke regulatory
oversight of amateur contests.
Assembly Amendments change the author of the bill; delete
legislative findings and declarations; delete existing law
relating to sparring; specify grounds for license suspension or
revocation; delete obsolete provisions of law; add language to
avoid chaptering-out issues with AB 1168 (Bonilla); and make
technical changes.
ANALYSIS : Existing federal law, the Muhammad Ali Boxing
Reform Act, prohibits events from taking place in a state
without a regulatory commission unless the fight is regulated by
either another state's commission or on sovereign tribal land.
Existing law:
1. The Boxing Act or the State Athletic Commission Act (State
Act) provides for the licensing and regulation of boxers,
kickboxers, martial arts athletes and events held in
California by CSAC and makes CSAC inoperative and repealed on
January 1, 2014.
2. Provides for the membership of CSAC.
3. Provides that protection of the public shall be the highest
priority for CSAC in exercising its licensing, regulatory,
and disciplinary functions, and whenever the protection of
the public is inconsistent with other interests sought to be
promoted, the protection of the public shall be paramount.
4. Provides that CSAC shall invite testimony from boxing
stakeholders to identify actions that may lead to greater
opportunities for its licensees to participate in major
professional championship boxing contests in the State and
provides a report based thereon to the Legislature.
5. Provides that CSAC may license professional and amateur
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
3
boxers, professional and amateur martial arts fighters, and
booking agents, managers of professional boxers and
professional martial arts fighters, trainers, chief seconds,
and seconds of each and that only a natural person may be
licensed as a boxer and martial arts fighter.
6. Provides that CSAC may authorize a nonprofit boxing,
wrestling, or martial arts club or organization, upon
approval of its bylaws, to administer its rules for amateur
boxing, wrestling, and full contact martial arts contests.
Requires CSAC to review the performance of any such club or
organization annually. Requires CSAC to review compliance
with requirements for amateur contests to be preceded by a
physical examination of every contestant, that a physician is
in attendance at the contest and that the organization has a
medical insurance program covering all contestants. Requires
an organization to provide written financial reports of
receipts and disbursements within 90 days of an amateur
event. Authorizes CSAC to have representatives present as
are necessary to obtain compliance with the requirements for
amateur events. Authorizes CSAC to require any additional
notices and reports from an organization it deems necessary.
7. Provides that no person shall conduct or operate a
professional boxers' training gymnasium unless he/she has a
license issued by CSAC. Defines "professional boxers'
training gymnasium" as a gymnasium, the principal business of
which is the providing of training facilities for
professional boxers, and in which a fee is charged to
professional boxers for the use of the gymnasium facilities
or a fee is charged to persons who view the training of
professional boxers. Provides that failure of a licensed
training gymnasium owner or operator, fighter, boxer,
trainer, second, or manager to report to CSAC an injury or
knockout of a licensed boxer or fighter or the holder of a
sparring permit shall be grounds for the suspension of their
license.
8. Establishes the application and renewal fee for a
professional boxers' training gymnasium at $200.
9. Provides that CSAC shall require, as a condition of licensure
and as a part of the application process, each applicant for
a license as a professional athlete or contestant licensed by
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
4
CSAC to undergo an examination by a licensed physician and
surgeon who specializes in neurology and neurosurgery.
Provides that the cost of the examinations shall be paid from
assessments on any one or more of the following: promoters of
professional matches, managers, and professional athletes or
other contestants licensed under this chapter. Provides that
the rate and manner of assessment shall be set by CSAC, and
may cover all costs associated with the examinations.
10.Requires applicants for a license or renewal of a license as
a professional boxer or professional martial arts fighter to
undergo blood tests to detect the presence of antibodies both
to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and to hepatitis C
virus (HCV) and to detect the presence of the antigen of
hepatitis B virus (HBV) within 30 days prior to the date of
the application. Requires the results of all three tests to
be negative.
11.Provides that no referee or physician shall be assigned to a
boxing contest who has not participated in a clinic sponsored
by CSAC in accordance with Business and Professions Code
Section 18731, in the preceding six months. Specifies that
clinics shall include, among other things, the subjects of
the rules of CSAC, the recognition and diagnosis of serious
or life-threatening, boxing-related and neurological injuries
and disorders, and refereeing a bout. Authorizes CSAC to pay
any necessary and authorized travel expenses of referees and
physicians who attend such clinics.
12.Establishes a five working day timeline for every person who
conducts a contest or wrestling exhibition for which
admission is charged and received to provide CSAC with proper
accounting and payment.
13.Establishes a fee of 5%, of the amount paid for admission to
the contest or wrestling exhibition, not to exceed the amount
of $100,000 to be paid to CSAC by every person who conducts a
contest or wrestling exhibition for which admission is
charged and received. Requires CSAC to provide a report to
the Legislature on the fiscal impact of the $100,000 limit on
fees collected by CSAC for admissions revenues. States that
if the fee for any one boxing contest exceeds $70,000, the
amount in excess of $70,000 shall be paid one-half to CSAC
and one-half to the Boxers' Pension Fund. Establishes a fee
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
5
of up to 5% for the sale, lease, or other exploitation of
broadcasting or television rights thereof to be paid to CSAC
by every person who conducts a contest or wrestling
exhibition. Specifies that the minimum fee shall be $1,000
or and maximum shall be $25,000.
14.Provides that an inspector or other representative of CSAC
duly authorized by the Executive Officer shall be admitted to
the box office, and is authorized to assist in the counting
of tickets and in the computation of the tax due thereon, and
to take any other action necessary. Requires the inspector
or other CSAC representative to immediately mail the official
statement of gross receipts received by him/her from the
promoter to CSAC.
15.Makes various findings and declarations about the importance
of providing a pension to professional boxers and establishes
a Boxers' Pension Fund financed by an assessment on tickets,
contribution by boxers, managers, promoters or a combination
thereof.
16.Establishes requirements for promoters to pay into the
Boxers' Pension Fund. Specifies that all contributions to
finance the Fund shall be deposited in the State Treasury and
credited to the Fund, all monies in which are continuously
appropriated for the purposes of administering the Fund.
States that the Fund is a retirement fund and provides that
no more than 20% of the annual contribution in the previous
two years shall be used for administrative costs associated
with investing, managing and distributing the Fund.
This bill:
1. Makes various technical and clarifying changes.
2. Extends CSAC's sunset date two years to January 1, 2016.
3. Deletes a number of reporting requirements.
4. Adds "sanctioning body" to the list of eligible organizations
to which CSAC may delegate its authority for oversight of
amateur sports. Authorizes CSAC, at its discretion, to
rescind previously approved authorization of a nonprofit
boxing, wrestling, or martial arts club or organization or
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
6
sanctioning body to administer its rules for amateur boxing,
wrestling, and full contact martial arts contests.
5. Repeals existing law that prohibits a professional boxer from
sparring for training purposes with any person not licensed
as a professional boxer or who lacks a sparring permit.
6. Replaces a professional boxers' training gymnasium license,
and requirements for an owner or operator of a professional
boxers' training gymnasium to report an injury or a knockout
to CSAC, with a professional trainer's license and
accountability measures for professional trainers to report
athlete injury to CSAC prior to a bout. Establishes the
application and renewal fee for a licensed professional
trainer as $200.
7. Specifies that failure of licensed entities to report a
licensed boxer or fighter's injury or knockout to CSAC and
to a database designated by CSAC, as specified, are grounds
for license suspension or revocation.
8. Provides that the administrative costs associated with
managing and distributing the neurological examination
account shall be limited to no more than 20% of the prior
year's contributions.
9. Requires CSAC to use no more than 30% of monies from the
State Athletic Commission Neurological Examination Account to
fund special neurological examinations and explore new
diagnostic imaging and testing to be used in relation to the
examinations required by this bill.
10.Prohibits a referee or physician and surgeon from being
assigned to a boxing contest if he/she has not completed,
within the preceding six months, a clinic offered by a
provider approved by CSAC, as specified. Authorizes a clinic
provider to charge a referee or physician and surgeon
participating in a clinic a reasonable fee.
11.Authorizes CSAC to charge a $20 fee to issue federal
identification cards and provides that cards shall be
reissued once every four years.
12.Changes the required timeline from five working days to 72
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
7
hours for every person who conducts a contest or wrestling
exhibition for which admission is charged and received to
provide CSAC with proper accounting and payment.
13.Raises the minimum fee collected by CSAC for an amateur event
or contest from $500 to $1,000. Clarifies that the minimum
fee collected by CSAC for a professional event is $1,250.
14.Raises the maximum broadcasting fee collected by CSAC from
$25,000 to $35,000.
15.Limits the administrative costs associated with investing,
managing and distributing the Boxers' Pension Fund to 2% of
the corpus of the Fund.
16.Deletes conditional fee provisions related to the Boxers'
Pension Fund that is now obsolete.
17.Adds language to avoid chaptering-out issues with AB 1168
(Bonilla).
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee:
Continues, for two years, special fund base
expenditures of $1.2 million (Athletic Commission Fund)
supporting five positions, offset by $1.4 million in
revenues, based on the 2013-14 Budget Act. Additional
ongoing costs of about $50,000 for one-half position to
administer the professional trainers' licensing program.
Increased revenues totaling approximately $290,000
annually (Athletic Commission Fund) from increased event
fees, trainers' licenses, and federal identification
cards.
SUPPORT : (Verified 9/10/13)
Bellator MMA
Roy Englebrecht Promotions/Fight Club OC
Zuffa LLC/Ultimate Fighting Championship
CONTINUED
SB 309
Page
8
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author states that he has been
concerned for the past number of years about significant and
ongoing problems with the way CSAC does business but that in
order to ensure the protection, health, welfare and safety of
the athletes and fighters licensed by CSAC, who participate in
sports and events CSAC oversees, CSAC should continue to
operate. According to the author, federal law (Muhammad Ali
Boxing Reform Act) prohibits events from taking place in a state
without a regulatory commission unless the fight is regulated by
either another state's commission or on sovereign tribal land.
Regulated events result in higher levels of protection for
fighters than unauthorized or illegal events, in addition to
added revenue for the state and a boon to the local economy
where events take place.
MW:d 9/11/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
CONTINUED