Senate Bill No. 688
(By Senators Stollings, Plymale and Prezioso)
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[Introduced February 18, 2008; referred to the Committee on
Education; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §18-2-25 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to powers of the state school board
to regulate athletic and extracurricular activities.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18-2-25 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-2-25. Authority of county boards to regulate athletic and other
extracurricular activities of secondary schools;
delegation of authority to West Virginia Secondary
School Activities Commission; authority of commission;
approval of rules and regulations by state board;
incorporation; funds; participation by private and
parochial schools.
The county boards of education are hereby granted and shall exercise the control, supervision and regulation of all
interscholastic athletic events, and other extracurricular
activities of the students in public secondary schools, and of said
schools of their respective counties. The county board of
education may delegate such control, supervision and regulation of
interscholastic athletic events and band activities to the "West
Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission," which is hereby
established.
The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission shall
be composed of the principals, or their representatives, of those
secondary schools whose county boards of education have certified
in writing to the State Superintendent of Schools that they have
elected to delegate the control, supervision and regulation of
their interscholastic athletic events and band activities of the
students in the public secondary schools in their respective
counties to said commission. The West Virginia Secondary School
Activities Commission is hereby empowered to exercise the control,
supervision and regulation of interscholastic athletic events and
band activities of secondary schools, delegated to it pursuant to
this section. The rules and regulations of the West Virginia
Secondary School Activities Commission shall contain a provision
for a proper review procedure and review board and be promulgated
in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code, but shall, in all instances be subject to the prior approval of the state board. The West Virginia Secondary School Activities
Commission, may, with the consent of the State Board of Education,
incorporate under the name of "West Virginia Secondary School
Activities Commission, Inc.," as a nonprofit, nonstock corporation
under the provisions of chapter thirty-one of this code. County
boards of education are hereby authorized to expend moneys for and
pay dues to the West Virginia Secondary School Activities
Commission, and all moneys paid to such commission, as well as
moneys derived from any contest or other event sponsored by said
commission, shall be quasi-public funds as the same are defined in
article five, chapter eighteen, and such funds of the commission
shall be subject to an annual audit by the State Tax Commissioner.
The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission shall
promulgate reasonable rules and regulations providing for the
control, supervision and regulation of the interscholastic athletic
events, including requiring that an athletic trainer be present at
all public school basketball and football games; and other
extracurricular activities of such private and parochial secondary
schools as elect to delegate to such commission such control,
supervision and regulation, upon the same terms and conditions,
subject to the same regulations and requirements and upon the
payment of the same fees and charges as those provided for public
secondary schools. Any such private or parochial secondary school
shall receive any monetary or other benefits in the same manner and in the same proportion as any public secondary school.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require all public
schools to have an athletic trainer present at football and
basketball games.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.