Amended in Assembly July 13, 2015

Amended in Senate June 1, 2015

Amended in Senate April 22, 2015

Senate Bill No. 469

Introduced by Senator Hill

February 25, 2015

An act to amend Sections 18602, 18613, 18645, and 18843 of, to amend and renumber Sections 18852, 18853, 18854, 18855, 18860, 18861, 18865, 18868, and 18869 of, and to add Sections 18649 and 18855 to, the Business and Professions Code, relating to professions and vocations.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 469, as amended, Hill. State Athletic Commission.

Under existing law, the State Athletic Commission Act, the State Athletic Commission has jurisdiction over all professional and amateur boxing, professional and amateur kickboxing, all forms and combinations of forms of full contact martial arts contests, including mixed martial arts, and matches or exhibitions conducted, held, or given within this state. A violation of the act is a crime. Existing law requires the commission to appoint an executive officer. Existing law repeals these provisions establishing the commission and authorizing it to appoint an executive officer on January 1, 2016.

This bill would extend those repeal dates to January 1, 2020.

Existing law requires the Advisory Committee on Medical and Safety Standards to consist of 6 licensed physicians and surgeons appointed by the commission and authorizes the commission to call meetings at such times and places as it deems appropriate for the purpose of studying and recommending medical and safety standards for the conduct of boxing, wrestling, and martial arts contests.

This bill would provide that a majority of the appointed members of the committee constitutes a quorum for the purposes of those meetings.

Existing regulation prohibits the administration or use of any drugs, alcohol or stimulants, or injections in any part of the body, either before or during a match, to or by any boxer. Under existing regulation, a person who applies for or holds a license as a professional boxer and who has at any time had a positive drug test confirmed by any commission for any specified substance is required as a condition of licensure or renewal to provide a urine specimen. Further, under existing regulation, a licensed boxer is required to provide a urine specimen for drug testing either before or after the bout, as directed by the commission.

This bill would prohibit the administration or use of any drugs, alcohol, stimulants, or injections in any part of the body or the use of any specified prohibited substances by a professional or amateur boxer or martial arts fighter licensed by the commission. Because a violation of this prohibition would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the commission, subject to the adoption of regulations, to determine the necessity of exemptions to that prohibition. The bill would authorize the commission to conduct testing at any time during the period of licensure to ensure compliance with the prohibition, as provided. The bill would make a licensee in violation of the prohibition subject to a fine begin delete equal end delete begin insert of up end insert to 40 begin delete percent end delete begin insert % end insert of the value of the total purse.

Under existing regulation, contracts between boxers and managers and between boxers or managers and licensed clubs are required to be executed on printed forms approved by the commission. Existing regulation authorizes the commission to recognize or enforce a contract not on its printed form if entered into in another jurisdiction. Existing regulation prohibits no other contract or agreement from being recognized or enforced by the commission. Under existing regulation, all disputes between the parties to the contract, including the validity of the contract, are required to be arbitrated pursuant to the provisions of the contract. Under existing regulation, a person who seeks arbitration of a contract dispute is required to send a written request for arbitration to the commission and to the office of the Attorney General, as specified.

This bill would codify these regulatory provisions in statute and would authorize the commission to recover the costs for the arbitration from the parties subject to the arbitration.

This bill would renumber various enforcement provisions and would make other nonsubstantive changes.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 18602 of the Business and Professions
Code is amended to read:

18602.  

(a) Except as provided in this section, there is in the
Department of Consumer Affairs the State Athletic Commission,
which consists of seven members. Five members shall be appointed
by the Governor, one member shall be appointed by the Senate
Committee on Rules, and one member shall be appointed by the
Speaker of the Assembly.

The members of the commission appointed by the Governor are
subject to confirmation by the Senate pursuant to Section 1322 of
the Government Code.

No person who is currently licensed, or who was licensed within
the last two years, under this chapter may be appointed or
reappointed to, or serve on, the commission.

(b) In appointing commissioners under this section, the
Governor, the Senate Committee on Rules, and the Speaker of the
Assembly shall make every effort to ensure that at least four of
the members of the commission shall have experience and
demonstrate expertise in one of the following areas:

(1) A licensed physician or surgeon having expertise or
specializing in neurology, neurosurgery, head trauma, or sports
medicine. Sports medicine includes, but is not limited to,
physiology, kinesiology, or other aspects of sports medicine.

(2) Financial management.

(3) Public safety.

(4) Past experience in the activity regulated by this chapter,
either as a contestant, a referee or official, a promoter, or a venue
operator.

(c) Each member of the commission shall be appointed for a
term of four years. All terms shall end on January 1. Vacancies
occurring prior to the expiration of the term shall be filled by
appointment for the unexpired term. No commission member may
serve more than two consecutive terms.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
members first appointed shall be subject to the following terms:

(1) The Governor shall appoint two members for two years, two
members for three years, and one member for four years.

(2) The Senate Committee on Rules shall appoint one member
for four years.

(3) The Speaker of the Assembly shall appoint one member for
four years.

(e) (1) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2020, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.

(2) Notwithstanding any other law, the repeal of this section
renders the board subject to review by the appropriate policy
committees of the Legislature.

SEC. 2.  

Section 18613 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

18613.  

(a) (1) The commission shall appoint a person exempt
from civil service who shall be designated as an executive officer
and who shall exercise the powers and perform the duties delegated
by the commission and vested in him or her by this chapter. The
appointment of the executive officer is subject to the approval of
the Director of Consumer Affairs.

(2) The commission may employ in accordance with Section
154 other personnel as may be necessary for the administration of
this chapter.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.

SEC. 3.  

Section 18645 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

18645.  

(a) There is hereby created within the jurisdiction of
the State Athletic Commission an Advisory Committee on Medical
and Safety Standards.

(b) The committee shall consist of six licensed physicians and
surgeons appointed by the commission. The commission may call
meetings of those physicians and surgeons at such times and places
as it deems appropriate for the purpose of studying and
recommending medical and safety standards for the conduct of
boxing, wrestling, and martial arts contests.

(c) It shall require a majority vote of the commission to appoint
a person to the committee. Each appointment shall be at the
pleasure of the commission for a term not to exceed four years.

(d) A majority of the appointed members of the committee shall
constitute a quorum for the purposes of meeting.

SEC. 4.  

Section 18649 is added to the Business and Professions
Code, to read:

18649.  

(a) The administration or use of any drugs, alcohol,
stimulants, or injections in any part of the body or the use of any
prohibited substance specified in the Prohibited List of the World
Anti-Doping Code, as adopted by the World Anti-Doping Agency,
by a professional or amateur boxer or martial arts fighter licensed
by the commission shall be prohibited. The commission, in its
discretion and pursuant to regulations adopted pursuant to the
Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government
Code), may determine the necessity of exemptions to this section
for certain licensees.

(b) The commission may conduct testing at any time during the
period of licensure for a professional or amateur boxer or martial
arts fighter licensed by the commission to ensure compliance with
subdivision (a).

(c) The commission may collect blood and urine specimens
from a professional or amateur boxer or martial arts fighter licensed
by the commission to detect the presence of any prohibited
substances. Collection of specimens shall be done in the presence
of authorized commission personnel.

(d) A professional or amateur boxer or martial arts fighter
licensed by the commission, for which the presence of a prohibited
substance is detected through testing by the commission, shall be
in violation of this section and subject to the penalties described
in Section 18843.

SEC. 5.  

Section 18843 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended to read:

18843.  

(a) In addition to its authority under other provisions
of this chapter to take action against a licensee, the commission,
its executive officer, or his or her duly authorized representative
shall have the authority to assess fines not to exceed two thousand
five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each violation of any of the
provisions of this chapter or any of the rules and regulations of the
commission.

(b) Notwithstanding any other provision, the commission may
also assess a fine begin delete equal end delete begin insert of up end insert to 40 percent of the total purse for a
violation of Section 18649 related to the use of prohibited
substances.

(c) Fines may be assessed without advance hearing, but the
licensee may apply to the commission for a hearing on the matter
if the fine should be modified or set aside. This application for a
hearing shall be in writing and shall be received by the commission
within 30 days after service of notice of the fine. Upon receipt of
this written request, the commission shall set the matter for hearing
within 30 days.

SEC. 6.  

Section 18852 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18851.  

A manager of a boxer or martial arts fighter shall
maintain an accurate annual record showing all of the following
with respect to each contest in which the boxer or martial arts
fighter has participated:

(a) Training expenses.

(b) Amount of money actually paid to the contestant.

(c) Amount of money which the manager received from the
purse.

(d) Amount of money owed to the manager by the contestant.

The manager’s record shall be supported by documentation,
shall be made available to both the fighter under contract and the
commission upon request, and shall be kept in the manager’s
possession for a period of five years from the transaction.

SEC. 7.  

Section 18853 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18852.  

No fighter shall be paid before a contest, except that a
promoter may, with the written approval of the commission,
advance to the fighter before the contest, up to one thousand dollars
($1,000) plus any necessary transportation and living expenses.
However, such advance, except necessary transportation and living
expenses, shall not exceed 20 percent of the fighter’s purse.

SEC. 8.  

Section 18854 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18853.  

No fighter, nor his or her manager, shall be paid for the
services of the fighter except in the presence of an authorized
commission representative. The commission representative shall
report to the executive officer any payment made contrary to the
provisions of the contract on file with the commission.

SEC. 9.  

Section 18855 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18854.  

Any official who fails to enforce the provisions of this
act or the commission’s rules and regulations shall be subject to
disciplinary action.

SEC. 10.  

Section 18855 is added to the Business and
Professions Code, to read:

18855.  

The commission shall recognize and enforce contracts
between boxers or martial arts fighters and managers and between
boxers or martial arts fighters and licensed clubs. Contracts shall
be executed on printed forms approved by the commission. The
commission may recognize or enforce a contract not on its printed
form if entered into in another jurisdiction. No other contract or
agreement may be recognized or enforced by the commission. All
disputes between the parties to the contract, including the validity
of the contract, shall be arbitrated by the commission pursuant to
the provisions of the contract. Subject to Section 227 of Title 4 of
the California Code of Regulations, a person who seeks arbitration
of a contract shall send a written request to the commission’s
headquarters and to the office of the Attorney General. The
commission may seek cost recovery related to arbitration
proceedings from the parties subject to the proceedings.

SEC. 11.  

Section 18860 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18856.  

(a) The commission, the executive officer, or authorized
representative shall have power to order a promoter to withhold
any purse, any part thereof, any receipts or other funds owing or
payable to any contestant, or the share thereof of any manager, if,
in his or her judgment, it should appear that the contestant is not
competing honestly, or is intentionally not competing to the best
of his or her ability, or if it should appear that the contestant,
manager, or any seconds have violated any provision of this act,
or the rules and regulations adopted by the commission.

(b) Any purse, or portion thereof, so withheld, shall be delivered
by the promoter to the commission upon demand. Any contestant
claiming the money withheld shall within 10 days after the end of
the contest apply in writing to the commission for a hearing, the
commission shall fix a date for the hearing, and after the hearing
determines the disposition to be made of the money held by the
commission.

(c) If no application for a hearing is filed within the time
prescribed the commission shall meet and determine the disposition
to be made of the money held by the commission.

(d) This section does not apply to any exhibition where the
participants are not competing to the best of their ability.

SEC. 12.  

Section 18861 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18857.  

The commission, the executive officer, or authorized
representative shall have the power to order a promoter to withhold
10 percent of the total purse payable to a contestant if the manager
of the contestant does not present an itemized statement of expenses
incurred in connection with the contest. The money so withheld
shall be paid to the commission and held in trust for payment to
the contestant or his or her manager, upon presentation by the
manager to the commission of the itemized statement of expenses.

SEC. 13.  

Section 18865 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18858.  

Any licensee who directly or indirectly holds,
participates in, aids, or abets any sham or fake contest or match
shall be subject to disciplinary action.

This section does not apply to any exhibition.

SEC. 14.  

Section 18868 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18859.  

(a) The commission shall have the authority to obtain
and review criminal history information to determine whether an
applicant or licensee has been convicted of any offense or has been
arrested for any offense for which disposition is still pending. A
conviction, or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to an offense,
may be cause to deny an application or take disciplinary action
against a licensee dependent on the relevancy of the offense to the
licensed activity.

(b) The commission may require applicants to submit two sets
of fingerprints which shall be furnished to the Department of
Justice. Upon the request of the commission, the Department of
Justice shall submit one set of the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau
of Investigation to obtain a copy of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation’s record and shall retain one set to search the
California criminal history system.

SEC. 15.  

Section 18869 of the Business and Professions Code
is amended and renumbered to read:

18860.  

Nothing in this chapter shall prevent any county, city,
or city and county from prohibiting the holding or participating in
any contest, match, or exhibition.

SEC. 16.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.