SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House gave its approval to legislation that would give high school athletes a limited right to compete in non-school events or on non-school teams during the same season in which they play for their school.
The House voted 68-39 on April 9 to pass a scaled-back version of a bill known as the Right to Play Act. It would partially override an existing rule of the Illinois High School Association that says students who participate on a school team may not also participate on a non-school team or compete in outside tournaments or events in the same sport during the same season, unless they obtain permission from both their school and IHSA.
The association currently allows students to obtain as many as three waivers in a season to compete in outside contests or tournaments if those events are sanctioned by the sport’s national governing body.
Rep. Janet Yang Rohr, D-Naperville, said she thinks that rule is too restrictive because it doesn’t allow for events sponsored by international sports organizations.
“Our athletes right now in Illinois have to decline invitations from FIFA (the international soccer governing body), from the Olympic development program, from offers to play with national teams in Canada and Scotland, because these IHSA rules compel the organization to deny their waiver requests,” she said on the House floor. “This legislation will finally be able to let those student athletes participate in those events too.”
Under the amended bill, student athletes would be able to obtain waivers for as many as two outside events per year, including “all-star team” events. But they would only need the agreement of their school’s principal or athletics director, not IHSA. The bill also would not require the events to be sanctioned by any official governing body.
That is significantly more restrictive than the original bill, which would have removed the prohibition on simultaneous participation almost entirely. It would have prohibited participating in both a school competition or practice and a non-school activity on the same day.
Read more: ‘Right to Play’ bill that would affect high school athletes advances in House
That proposal passed out of the House Education Policy Committee in March, despite warnings from some critics that allowing unrestricted dual participation could endanger the health and safety of the athletes while also setting up the possibility of conflict between a school coach and non-school coach.
But Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington Hills, who voted for the amended bill, said during floor debate that he would have preferred going even further in limiting the authority of IHSA.
“This is an unfortunate turn with your amendments, but I completely appreciate … what you had to do to get this started,” he said during floor debate. “But frankly, let’s next year – and I’ll join you – get this completely wiped out. Get the IHSA back in the lane where they should be, which is to be fair and to allow all these students to have every equal opportunity for scholarships that they can get.”
IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said in an email Wednesday that the association still opposes the proposed legislation because it puts principals and athletic directors in charge of deciding whether a student should be granted a waiver.
“It’s my understanding that the schools prefer a process whereby review of such participation is considered by the Association to create equity in opportunities across the membership,” Anderson said.
The bill now awaits further action in the Senate.
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