BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 7|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 7
Author: Huffman (D), et al
Amended: 4/7/10 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 5-1, 5/5/10
AYES: Romero, Alquist, Hancock, Price, Simitian
NOES: Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Huff, Liu
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : High School Baseball Safety Act of 2010
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : Senate Floor Amendments of 4/7/10 deleted the
entire bill dealing with the Political Reform Act of 1974.
As amended, this bill enacts the High School Baseball
Safety Act of 2010. This bill prohibits the use of
nonwooden baseball bats during practice and competitive
games at private and public high schools in California.
The provisions of the bill sunset on January 1, 2012, to
coincide with the implementation of new baseball bat
standards.
ANALYSIS : Existing law gives the governing board of a
school district general control of, and responsibility for,
all aspects of interscholastic athletic policies, programs,
CONTINUED
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and activities in its district, and requires the governing
board to ensure that all interscholastic policies,
programs, and activities in its district are in compliance
with state and federal law.
Existing law prohibits participants in high school
interscholastic football from wearing football helmets that
are not certified for use by the National Operating
Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment or another
recognized certifying agency in the field.
This bill enacts the High School Baseball Safety Act of
2010. The bill would express findings and declarations of
the Legislature regarding the safety implications of the
use of nonwooden bats in high school baseball. The bill,
until July 1, 2014, prohibits the use of a nonwood baseball
bat at a private or public high school competitive baseball
game or practice or during a physical education class or
activity conducted at a private or public high school.
This bill contains the following Legislative findings:
1. On March 11, 2010, 16-year-old Gunnar Sandberg, a
pitcher for Marin Catholic High School in Marin County,
was struck in the head by a line-drive hit from a metal
bat, and suffered severe head injuries that required
emergency brain surgery.
2. The recent tragedy involving Gunnar Sandberg is not an
isolated incident. In recent years, there have been
numerous incidents of serious injury and even death
involving baseball pitchers who were struck in the head
by balls hit with metal bats.
3. Historically, and continuing to the present day at the
professional level, baseball has been played with wooden
bats. Beginning in approximately the 1970s, aluminum
bats began to appear as a popular alternative to wood
bats, and in recent years nonwooden bats have become
commonplace at these levels of competition. Advances in
baseball bat design, including the materials and
technology used, have resulted in bats that far
outperform traditional wood bats.
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4. There is substantial evidence that baseballs struck with
these advanced nonwooden bats travel at faster
velocities, leaving pitchers less time to respond to
balls that are hit at them and increasing the likelihood
of serious injury. In 2009, the NCAA enacted a
moratorium on the use of composite barreled bats until
2011. According to the National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA), this moratorium is necessary to
protect the integrity of the game and to enhance the
safety of the student athletes.
5. In California and throughout the country, there are
growing concerns that these advanced nonwooden bats
present an unacceptable safety risk to pitchers. These
concerns are especially acute at the high school level.
Many members of the baseball community, as well as
independent experts, have called for a ban on nonwooden
bats. Some also suggest that protective headgear for
pitchers should be required.
6. In response to the Sandberg tragedy, the Marin County
Athletic League voted on March 25, 2010, to suspend the
use of nonwooden bats for the rest of the 2010 baseball
season, and called on other high school athletic
officials to do the same.
7. A statewide moratorium on the use of nonwooden bats in
high school baseball for three years is an appropriate
precautionary measure. The sport of baseball will not
be harmed or compromised by the use of traditional wood
bats during this period. It is the intent of the
Legislature that, during this three-year moratorium,
sports officials and members of the baseball community
should actively consider and evaluate strategies to
ensure player safety, including, but not limited to, the
materials and performance standards for baseball bats
and the possibility of protective headgear.
8. The Legislature notes that nonwooden bats are prohibited
at the major and minor league levels, and baseball is a
game of traditions, which suggests that consideration
should be given to whether the use of nonwooden bats is
consistent with the traditions and highest standards of
the game.
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The provisions of the bill sunset on January 1, 2012, to
coincide with the implementation of new baseball bat
standards.
Background
The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) is a
voluntary organization of school principals, school board
members, school superintendents and school athletics
directors. There are 10 CIF Sections (regional governance
structure). The CIF operates under statewide bylaws, and
school districts and local CIF Sections develop their own
Section bylaws that are under the umbrella of the state
bylaws.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is
conducting tests to measure the performance of baseball
bats. Baseball bats that meet NCAA performance standards
are allowed for use in high schools in California. The CIF
does not conduct their own performance tests purportedly
due to a lack of funding.
New NCAA standards will apply to high schools in 2012 . In
2009, the National Federation of State High School
Associations adopted a rule change that will require all
baseball bats used by high school baseball teams to meet
the Ball-Bat Coefficient of Restitution performance
standard beginning in January 1, 2012. The CIF typically
follows rules for baseball adopted by the National
Federation of State High School Associations, and as such,
bats used in high school baseball in California will be
required to meet BBCOR performance standards beginning
January 1, 2012.
Local action regarding non-wood bats . The Marin County
Athletic League and the Bay Counties League have imposed a
moratorium on non-wood bats for the remainder of the
current baseball season. The North Coast Section (of CIF)
recently opted not to impose a moratorium on non-wood bats
for the playoffs because the entire regular season was
played using non-wood bats, and apparently did not feel the
safety of pupils was at a significantly greater risk by
using non-wood bats. However, some expect the North Coast
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Section to revisit this issue before the beginning of the
next regular season. As these local moratoriums indicate,
state law does not preclude individual teams, leagues or
sections from imposing moratoriums or bans on non-wood
bats.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/12/10)
American Nurses Association of California
California Academy of Physician Assistants
California Orthopedic Association
Consumer Attorneys of California
OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/12/10)
American Amateur Baseball Congress
American Legion Baseball
Babe Ruth Baseball
Little League Baseball
National Collegiate Athletic Association
PONY International
Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association
USA Baseball
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
"on March 11, 2010, a 16-year old Marin Catholic High
School pitcher was struck in the head by a baseball hit
with an aluminum bat. Witnesses and baseball experts
estimate that the ball was traveling in excess of 100 mph,
leaving the pitcher with virtually no time to react. This
tragedy is the latest in a growing number of incidents
involving injuries to pitchers from performance-enhancing
metal bats."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The Sporting Goods
Manufacturers Association states in opposition, "?what
prompted this discussion was the batted-ball injury
suffered by Gunnar Sandberg (from Marin Catholic High
School) on March 11. The baseball industry's thoughts and
prayers remain with Gunner and his family. It was a tragic
accident, to say the least.
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"Right now, high school (and college) baseball bats right
now are produced to the BESR (Ball Exit Speed Ratio)
standard, though that bat standard is being changed to the
more restrictive BBCOR standard -- beginning on January 1,
2011 for college baseball and on January 1, 2012 for high
school baseball.
"In the proposed legislation to ban non-wood bats by
California State Assemblyman Jared Huffman, he is
requesting that tests on bats should be conducted so that
safer standards can be established on non-wood bats. I'm
pleased to inform you that USA Baseball, the national
governing body of amateur baseball in the United States, is
in the midst of testing non-wood bats. The process is
currently taking place at Brown University under the
direction of Dr. Trey Crisco. The bats to be tested will
range from bats used by Little Leaguers (youth bats) to
bats used by college players.
"In the meantime, there has been a great deal of research
done in recent years on the 'wood vs. non-wood' baseball
bat issue which bears further consideration."
USA Baseball also states in opposition that, "As a parent,
the emotion and pain of the incident involving Gunnar
Sandberg is not lost on me. However, within the past weeks
two professional baseball players (wood bats) were involved
in similar incidents (Rudy Lugo, AAA Pitcher on April 24th
struck by a line drive in the temple and listed in serious
condition, and Pittsburgh Pirates' Pitcher Chris
Jakubauskas was hit in the face on the same day in a Major
League Game and subsequently hospitalized).
"The National Federation of State High School Associations,
in close cooperation with the NCAA has mandated the use of
baseball bats that are subject to performance specific
standards. Additionally, the NCAA and NFSHA will be
enacting new standards (the NCAA in January, 2011 and the
NFSHA in January 2012) that will further govern (limit) bat
standards. As a result of these bat standards it is the
opinion of USA Baseball that such legislation as proposed
in Assembly Bill No. 7 is not warranted or necessary."
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RJG:nl 5/12/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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