Senate Bill No. 285
(By Senator Blatnik)
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[Introduced February 7, 1994; referred to the Committee
on Education.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section twenty-five, article two,
chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to mandating
certain composition requirements on boards of the secondary
school activities commission.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section twenty-five, article two, chapter eighteen of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one,
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 shallexercise 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: Provided,
That all present and future boards of the commission including,
but not limited to, the board of appeals, review board and board
of trustees shall observe the following member composition
requirements which shall be monitored and enforced by the state
board of education: (1) Principals, athletic directors and
coaches shall not comprise more than fifty percent of the membersof any board and (2) at least one parent representing female
athletes shall be appointed to and serve as a voting member on
each board. 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 and other extracurricular activities of such
private and parochial secondary schools as elect to delegate to
such commission such control, supervision and regulation, uponthe 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 that all
boards of the secondary school activities commission including,
but not limited to, the board of appeals, the review board and
the board of trustees have the following composition
requirements: (1) No more than 50% of the members of any board
may be principals, athletic directors or coaches, and (2) at
least one parent representing female athletes must be appointed
as a voting member of each board.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.