BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1660
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 3, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT, SPORTS, TOURISM, AND
INTERNET MEDIA
Kansen Chu, Chair
AB 1660
(Cooper) - As Amended March 29, 2016
SUBJECT: Interscholastic athletics: California Interscholastic
Federation: report.
SUMMARY: Eliminates the sunset for the California
Interscholastic Federation (CIF) to have responsibility for
administering high school interscholastic athletics.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Continues, without sunset, the authorization of CIF with
specified responsibilities for interscholastic sports.
2)Requires the CIF to report to the Legislature and Governor by
January 1, 2024, and on or before January 1 every seven years
thereafter, addressing specified goals and objectives, such as
effectiveness of governance structure, gender equity, health
and safety and economic vitality.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes CIF as a voluntary organization responsible for
administering high school interscholastic athletics and
AB 1660
Page 2
sunsets this authorization on January 1, 2017. (Education Code
33353)
2)Requires CIF to report to the Legislature and Governor by
January 1, 2016 on several specified goals and objectives,
such as effectiveness of governance structure, gender equity,
health and safety, and economic viability. (Education Code
33353)
3)Authorizes the California Department of Education (CDE) to
determine if the policies of school districts and CIF are in
compliance with state and federal laws, as specified.
(Education Code 33354)
FISCAL EFFECT: None. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
1)Author's statement of need for legislation and support:
According to the author, "The CIF plays a vital role in
governing and creating an environment that promotes
sportsmanship, honesty, and quality academics. In California,
school boards primarily enter into agreements with the CIF for
purpose of governing regional or statewide interscholastic
programs and actively participate in the governance structure
of the organization. Since 1981, the Legislature has approved
CIF's sunset extension, including in 2011 which extended the
sunset for another seven years. AB 1660 indefinitely extends
authority to CIF to oversee California public and private high
school interscholastic athletic programs and requires CIF to
AB 1660
Page 3
report to the Legislature and the Governor on its activities
every seven years."
The CIF notes in support, that AB 1660,"would make permanent
existing statutes that require CIF to comply with the state's
open meeting "Brown Act" and existing accountability
provisions, including the requirements for CIF to report on
its activities to the Legislature and Governor." They also
point to the list of successful sunset extensions, and believe
sunset legislation will no longer be necessary if current law,
which contains accountability and reporting requirements, is
made permanent.
2)Background: CIF history, scope and purpose. The California
Interscholastic Federation was organized at a high school
athletic convention on March 28, 1914, as a voluntary
association of schools. Since 1914, the California Department
of Education (CDE) has allowed the CIF, to regulate
interscholastic athletics, and the CIF has been the
rule-making body for all of California's K-12 athletics
programs since 1917. In 1981, that rule-making authority was
expanded to include control over all interscholastic
athletics, replacing the CDE in that role.
The Federation consists of ten regional sections, each of
which is divided into several "leagues," for purposes of
scheduling athletic contests, assigning referees, etc. Similar
organizations exist in other states. Almost all public,
private and parochial schools in California are CIF members.
The primary responsibilities of CIF are to administer high
school athletic programs and to promulgate and enforce rules
AB 1660
Page 4
relating to a student's involvement in athletics - age,
semesters in school, scholarship, residence, transfer status,
and amateur standing. Such regulations, which are generated by
the 1,514 member base of secondary schools, prevent
undesirable exploitation of high school students, provide for
the welfare of participants, and ensure that interscholastic
athletics offer major benefits to students in a safe,
rewarding environment.
3)Committee concern: Reports to the Legislature do not
sufficiently serve the purpose currently filled by Sunset
Review: This bill would eliminate the sunset date for CIF's
authorization and extend indefinitely its authority and
responsibilities for administering high school sports
throughout the state. As noted in the Education Committee
analysis of this measure, historically, this sunset date has
been extended in five-year increments, though longer
extensions have been proposed. In 2005, SB 562 (Torlakson)
would have eliminated the sunset date, as this bill does. SB
562 was later amended to continue the five-year sunset period,
rather than eliminate it. In 2011, SB 107 (Price) proposed a
10-year sunset period and two required reports from the CIF.
That bill was amended and chaptered to include a sunset on
January 1, 2017 and a single required report due January 1,
2016.
During some earlier legislative reviews, including a 2008
Oversight Hearing held by this committee, The California
Interscholastic Federation, it was suggested that the sunsets
provide a ready opportunity for the Legislature to evaluate
the progress of the CIF with respect to issues of concern,
which might include questions of student athlete injury
protocols or questions of equal access, the latter of which
remains a particular challenge for the CIF to achieve, with
California ranking 31st in a recent survey of states in gender
equity. The Atlantic reports that over 25% of California high
schools have a "large gender equity gap in sports." According
AB 1660
Page 5
to the survey authors, "a gap is considered 'large' if the
difference between the percentage of spots on teams allocated
to girls and that allocated to boys is 10 points or higher. If
girls account for, say, 55 percent of the population at a
school but only get 43 percent of all the spots on teams, that
school has a 12 percent gap." (Where Girls Are Missing Out on
High-School Sports, The Atlantic, June 26, 2015, accessed
online April 21, 2016.)
While supporters, such as the California School Boards
Association, believe that, "With the bill's creation of an
ongoing, seven-year cycle of reports to the Legislature and
Governor, there will no longer be a need for a sunset on the
organization's authority," the committee has concerns that a
passive report will not offer sufficient opportunity for
commentary and oversight. This is especially true for outside
entities beyond the Legislative committees and Governor's
staff designated to receive the reports. The bill does
recognize that the public may make comments at the CIF
federation council meetings, but this is not the same as
legislative oversight.
In light of this concern, the committee suggests the bill be
amended to include a joint oversight hearing of the
legislative committees which receive the report proposed in
this bill, to be held in the years that CIF reports are
presented to the Legislature and Governor.
4) Prior related legislation:
a) SB 107 (Price), Chapter 230, Statutes of 2011, among
other things, extended the sunset on CIF statutes from
January 1, 2012 to January 1, 2017.
AB 1660
Page 6
b) SB 562 (Torlakson), Chapter 301, Statutes of 2006, among
other things, extended the sunset on CIF statutes from
January 1, 2007 to January 1, 2012.
c) SB 225 (Kuehl), Chapter 889, Statutes of 2001, among
other things, extended the sunset date from January 1,
2001, to January 1, 2007.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Organizations in support:
Association of California School Administrators
California Association for Health, Physical Education,
Recreation and Dance
California Association of Directors of Activities
California Association of Private School Organizations
California Catholic Conference
California Department of Education
AB 1660
Page 7
California Interscholastic Federation
California School Boards Association
California State Athletic Directors Association
Division of Teaching and Learning in the San Juan Unified School
District
Los Angeles City Athletic Directors Association
There are also 924 schools and school districts in support and
several individuals.
Opposition
There is no opposition on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Dana Mitchell / A.,E.,S.,T., & I.M. / (916)
319-3450