The Florida Senate

1006.20  Athletics in public K-12 schools.--

(1)  GOVERNING NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.--The Florida High School Athletic Association is designated as the governing nonprofit organization of athletics in Florida public schools. If the Florida High School Athletic Association fails to meet the provisions of this section, the commissioner shall designate a nonprofit organization to govern athletics with the approval of the State Board of Education. The organization is not to be a state agency as defined in s. 120.52 The organization shall be subject to the provisions of s. 1006.19 A private school that wishes to engage in high school athletic competition with a public high school may become a member of the organization. The bylaws of the organization are to be the rules by which high school athletic programs in its member schools, and the students who participate in them, are governed, unless otherwise specifically provided by statute. For the purposes of this section, "high school" includes grades 6 through 12.

(2)  ADOPTION OF BYLAWS.--

(a)  The organization shall adopt bylaws that, unless specifically provided by statute, establish eligibility requirements for all students who participate in high school athletic competition in its member schools. The bylaws governing residence and transfer shall allow the student to be eligible in the school in which he or she first enrolls each school year, or makes himself or herself a candidate for an athletic team by engaging in a practice prior to enrolling in any member school. The student shall be eligible in that school so long as he or she remains enrolled in that school. Subsequent eligibility shall be determined and enforced through the organization's bylaws.

(b)  The organization shall adopt bylaws that specifically prohibit the recruiting of students for athletic purposes. The bylaws shall prescribe penalties and an appeals process for athletic recruiting violations.

(c)  The organization shall adopt bylaws that require all students participating in interscholastic athletic competition or who are candidates for an interscholastic athletic team to satisfactorily pass a medical evaluation each year prior to participating in interscholastic athletic competition or engaging in any practice, tryout, workout, or other physical activity associated with the student's candidacy for an interscholastic athletic team. Such medical evaluation can only be administered by a practitioner licensed under the provisions of chapter 458, chapter 459, chapter 460, or s. 464.012, and in good standing with the practitioner's regulatory board. The bylaws shall establish requirements for eliciting a student's medical history and performing the medical evaluation required under this paragraph, which shall include a physical assessment of the student's physical capabilities to participate in interscholastic athletic competition as contained in a uniform preparticipation physical evaluation and history form. The evaluation form shall incorporate the recommendations of the American Heart Association for participation cardiovascular screening and shall provide a place for the signature of the practitioner performing the evaluation with an attestation that each examination procedure listed on the form was performed by the practitioner or by someone under the direct supervision of the practitioner. The form shall also contain a place for the practitioner to indicate if a referral to another practitioner was made in lieu of completion of a certain examination procedure. The form shall provide a place for the practitioner to whom the student was referred to complete the remaining sections and attest to that portion of the examination. The preparticipation physical evaluation form shall advise students to complete a cardiovascular assessment and shall include information concerning alternative cardiovascular evaluation and diagnostic tests. Results of such medical evaluation must be provided to the school. No student shall be eligible to participate in any interscholastic athletic competition or engage in any practice, tryout, workout, or other physical activity associated with the student's candidacy for an interscholastic athletic team until the results of the medical evaluation have been received and approved by the school.

(d)  Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (c), a student may participate in interscholastic athletic competition or be a candidate for an interscholastic athletic team if the parent of the student objects in writing to the student undergoing a medical evaluation because such evaluation is contrary to his or her religious tenets or practices. However, in such case, there shall be no liability on the part of any person or entity in a position to otherwise rely on the results of such medical evaluation for any damages resulting from the student's injury or death arising directly from the student's participation in interscholastic athletics where an undisclosed medical condition that would have been revealed in the medical evaluation is a proximate cause of the injury or death.

(3)  GOVERNING STRUCTURE OF THE ORGANIZATION.--

(a)  The organization shall operate as a representative democracy in which the sovereign authority is within its member schools. Except as provided in this section, the organization shall govern its affairs through its bylaws.

(b)  Each member school, on its annual application for membership, shall name its official representative to the organization. This representative must be either the school principal or his or her designee. That designee must either be an assistant principal or athletic director housed within that same school.

(c)  The organization's membership shall be divided along existing county lines into four contiguous and compact administrative regions, each containing an equal or nearly equal number of member schools to ensure equitable representation on the organization's board of directors, representative assembly, and committee on appeals.

(4)  BOARD OF DIRECTORS.--

(a)  The executive authority of the organization shall be vested in its board of directors. Any entity that appoints members to the board of directors shall examine the ethnic and demographic composition of the board when selecting candidates for appointment and shall, to the greatest extent possible, make appointments that reflect state demographic and population trends. The board of directors shall be composed of 16 persons, as follows:

1.  Four public member school representatives, one elected from among its public school representative members within each of the four administrative regions.

2.  Four nonpublic member school representatives, one elected from among its nonpublic school representative members within each of the four administrative regions.

3.  Three representatives appointed by the commissioner, one appointed from the two northernmost administrative regions and one appointed from the two southernmost administrative regions. The third representative shall be appointed to balance the board for diversity or state population trends, or both.

4.  Two district school superintendents, one elected from the two northernmost administrative regions by the members in those regions and one elected from the two southernmost administrative regions by the members in those regions.

5.  Two district school board members, one elected from the two northernmost administrative regions by the members in those regions and one elected from the two southernmost administrative regions by the members in those regions.

6.  The commissioner or his or her designee from the department executive staff.

(b)  A quorum of the board of directors shall consist of nine members.

(c)  The board of directors shall elect a president and a vice president from among its members. These officers shall also serve as officers of the organization.

(d)  Members of the board of directors shall serve terms of 3 years and are eligible to succeed themselves only once. A member of the board of directors, other than the commissioner or his or her designee, may serve a maximum of 6 consecutive years. The organization's bylaws shall establish a rotation of terms to ensure that a majority of the members' terms do not expire concurrently.

(e)  The authority and duties of the board of directors, acting as a body and in accordance with the organization's bylaws, are as follows:

1.  To act as the incorporated organization's board of directors and to fulfill its obligations as required by the organization's charter and articles of incorporation.

2.  To establish such guidelines, regulations, policies, and procedures as are authorized by the bylaws.

3.  To provide an organization commissioner, who shall have the authority to waive the bylaws of the organization in order to comply with statutory changes.

4.  To levy annual dues and other fees and to set the percentage of contest receipts to be collected by the organization.

5.  To approve the budget of the organization.

6.  To organize and conduct statewide interscholastic competitions, which may or may not lead to state championships, and to establish the terms and conditions for these competitions.

7.  To act as an administrative board in the interpretation of, and final decision on, all questions and appeals arising from the directing of interscholastic athletics of member schools.

(5)  REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY.--

(a)  The legislative authority of the organization is vested in its representative assembly.

(b)  The representative assembly shall be composed of the following:

1.  An equal number of member school representatives from each of the four administrative regions.

2.  Four district school superintendents, one elected from each of the four administrative regions by the district school superintendents in their respective administrative regions.

3.  Four district school board members, one elected from each of the four administrative regions by the district school board members in their respective administrative regions.

4.  The commissioner or his or her designee from the department executive staff.

(c)  The organization's bylaws shall establish the number of member school representatives to serve in the representative assembly from each of the four administrative regions and shall establish the method for their selection.

(d)  No member of the board of directors other than the commissioner or his or her designee can serve in the representative assembly.

(e)  The representative assembly shall elect a chairperson and a vice chairperson from among its members.

(f)  Elected members of the representative assembly shall serve terms of 2 years and are eligible to succeed themselves for two additional terms. An elected member, other than the commissioner or his or her designee, may serve a maximum of 6 consecutive years in the representative assembly.

(g)  A quorum of the representative assembly consists of one more than half of its members.

(h)  The authority of the representative assembly is limited to its sole duty, which is to consider, adopt, or reject any proposed amendments to the organization's bylaws.

(i)  The representative assembly shall meet as a body annually. A two-thirds majority of the votes cast by members present is required for passage of any proposal.

(6)  PUBLIC LIAISON ADVISORY COMMITTEE.--

(a)  The organization shall establish, sustain, fund, and provide staff support to a public liaison advisory committee composed of the following:

1.  The commissioner or his or her designee.

2.  A member public school principal.

3.  A member private school principal.

4.  A member school principal who is a member of a racial minority.

5.  An active athletic director.

6.  An active coach, who is employed full time by a member school.

7.  A student athlete.

8.  A district school superintendent.

9.  A district school board member.

10.  A member of the Florida House of Representatives.

11.  A member of the Florida Senate.

12.  A parent of a high school student.

13.  A member of a home education association.

14.  A representative of the business community.

15.  A representative of the news media.

(b)  No member of the board of directors, committee on appeals, or representative assembly is eligible to serve on the public liaison advisory committee.

(c)  The public liaison advisory committee shall elect a chairperson and vice chairperson from among its members.

(d)  The authority and duties of the public liaison advisory committee are as follows:

1.  To act as a conduit through which the general public may have input into the decisionmaking process of the organization and to assist the organization in the development of procedures regarding the receipt of public input and disposition of complaints related to high school athletic and competition programs.

2.  To conduct public hearings annually in each of the four administrative regions during which interested parties may address issues regarding the effectiveness of the rules, operation, and management of the organization.

3.  To conduct an annual evaluation of the organization as a whole and present a report of its findings, conclusion, and recommendations to the board of directors, to the commissioner, and to the respective education committees of the Florida Senate and the Florida House of Representatives. The recommendations must delineate policies and procedures that will improve the implementation and oversight of high school athletic programs by the organization.

(e)  The public liaison advisory committee shall meet four times annually. Additional meetings may be called by the committee chairperson, the organization president, or the organization commissioner.

(7)  APPEALS.--

(a)  The organization shall establish a procedure of due process which ensures each student the opportunity to appeal an unfavorable ruling with regard to his or her eligibility to compete. The initial appeal shall be made to a committee on appeals within the administrative region in which the student lives. The organization's bylaws shall establish the number, size, and composition of the committee on appeals.

(b)  No member of the board of directors is eligible to serve on the committee on appeals.

(c)  Members of the committee on appeals shall serve terms of 3 years and are eligible to succeed themselves only once. A member of the committee on appeals may serve a maximum of 6 consecutive years. The organization's bylaws shall establish a rotation of terms to ensure that a majority of the members' terms do not expire concurrently.

(d)  The authority and duties of the committee on appeals shall be to consider requests by member schools seeking exceptions to bylaws and regulations, to hear undue hardship eligibility cases filed by member schools on behalf of student athletes, and to hear appeals filed by member schools.

(e)  A student athlete or member school that receives an unfavorable ruling from a committee on appeals shall be entitled to appeal that decision to the board of directors at its next regularly scheduled meeting or called meeting. The board of directors shall have the authority to uphold, reverse, or amend the decision of the committee on appeals. In all such cases, the decision of the board of directors shall be final.

(8)  AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS.--Each member school representative, the board of directors acting as a whole or as members acting individually, any advisory committee acting as a whole to be established by the organization, and the organization's commissioner are empowered to propose amendments to the bylaws. Any other individual may propose an amendment by securing the sponsorship of any of the aforementioned individuals or bodies. All proposed amendments must be submitted directly to the representative assembly for its consideration. The representative assembly, while empowered to adopt, reject, or revise proposed amendments, may not, in and of itself, as a body be allowed to propose any amendment for its own consideration.

(9)  RULES ADOPTION.--The bylaws of the organization shall require member schools to adopt rules for sports, which have been established by a nationally recognized sanctioning body, unless waived by at least a two-thirds vote of the board of directors.

(10)  RANDOM DRUG TESTING PROGRAM.--

(a)  Contingent upon funding, and to the extent funded, the organization shall facilitate a 1-year program during the 2007-2008 academic year in which students in grades 9 through 12 in its member schools who participate in regular and postseason competition in football, baseball, or weightlifting governed by the organization shall be subject to random testing for the use of anabolic steroids as defined in s. 893.03(3)(d). All schools, both public and private, shall consent to the provisions of this subsection as a prerequisite for membership in the organization for the duration of the program.

(b)  The organization's board of directors shall establish procedures for the conduct of the program that, at a minimum, shall provide for the following:

1.  The organization shall select and enter into a contract with a testing agency that will administer the testing program. The laboratory utilized by the testing agency to analyze specimens shall be accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

2.  Each member school shall report to the organization the names of all students who will represent the school in football, baseball, and weightlifting. A student shall not be eligible to participate in interscholastic athletics in any of these sports in a member school until the student's name has been reported to the organization by the school.

3.  The organization shall provide to the testing agency all names of students that are submitted by its member schools. A maximum of 1 percent of the total number of students who participate in football, baseball, and weightlifting shall be randomly selected by the testing agency to undergo testing.

4.  The testing agency shall notify not fewer than 7 days in advance both the administration of a school and the organization of the date on which its representatives will be present at the school to collect a specimen from a randomly selected student. However, the name of the student from which a specimen is to be collected shall not be disclosed.

5.  Records relating to drug tests under this subsection and to the challenge and appeal proceedings under paragraph (h) shall be maintained separately from a student's educational records.

6.a.  Records relating to drug tests under this subsection and to the challenge or appeal proceedings under paragraph (h) are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2012, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

b.  Information made confidential and exempt under sub-subparagraph a. may only be disclosed to the organization, the student, the student's parent, the administration of the student's school, and the administration of any school to which the student may transfer during a suspension from participation in interscholastic athletics resulting from a positive finding. The entities or persons receiving such information shall maintain the confidential and exempt status of the information.

7.  The portions of a meeting at which records are presented or discussed that are confidential and exempt under subparagraph 6. are exempt from s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of the State Constitution. This subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2012, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

(c)  Each student who wishes to participate in football, baseball, or weightlifting and his or her parent must consent to the provisions of this subsection as a prerequisite for athletic eligibility. This consent shall be in writing on a form prescribed by the organization and provided to the student by his or her school. Failure to complete and sign the consent form shall result in the student's ineligibility to participate in the sport for which the consent form is required. The consent form shall include the following information:

1.  A brief description of the drug testing program.

2.  The penalties for a positive finding.

3.  The procedure for challenging a positive finding.

4.  The procedure for appealing a prescribed penalty.

(d)  A student who is selected for testing and fails to provide a specimen shall be immediately suspended from interscholastic athletic practice and competition until such time as a specimen is provided.

(e)  If a student tests positive in a test administered under this subsection, the administration of the school the student attends shall immediately:

1.  Suspend the student from participation in all interscholastic athletic practice and competition.

2.  Notify and schedule a meeting with the student and his or her parent during which the principal or his or her designee shall review with them the positive finding, the procedure for challenging the positive finding, the prescribed penalties, and the procedure for appealing the prescribed penalties.

(f)  For a positive finding, the student shall be suspended from all interscholastic athletic practice and competition for a period of 90 school days and shall be subject to a mandatory exit test for restoration of eligibility no sooner than the 60th school day of the suspension. If the exit test is negative, the organization shall immediately restore the eligibility of the student. If the exit test is positive, the student shall remain suspended from all interscholastic athletic practice and competition until such time as a subsequent retest of the student results in a negative finding. The student shall be subject to repeated tests for the duration of his or her high school athletic eligibility.

(g)  In addition to the penalties prescribed in paragraph (f), a student who tests positive in a test administered under this subsection shall attend and complete an appropriate mandatory drug education program conducted by the student's school, the student's school district, or a third-party organization contracted by the school or school district to conduct such an education program.

(h)  The following due process shall be afforded each student who tests positive in a test administered under this subsection:

1.  The member school may challenge a positive finding and must challenge a positive finding at the request of the student. A sample of the original specimen provided by the student and retained by the testing agency shall be analyzed. The member school or the student's parent shall pay the cost of the analysis. If the analysis results in a positive finding, the student shall remain ineligible until the prescribed penalty is fulfilled. If the analysis results in a negative finding, the organization shall immediately restore the eligibility of the student and shall refund to the member school or student's parent the cost of the analysis. The student shall remain suspended from interscholastic athletic practice and competition during the challenge.

2.a.  The member school may appeal to the organization's commissioner the period of ineligibility imposed on a student as a result of a positive finding and must appeal at the request of the student. The commissioner may require the student to complete the prescribed penalty, reduce the prescribed penalty by one-half, or provide complete relief from the prescribed penalty. Regardless of the decision of the commissioner, the student shall remain ineligible until the student tests negative on an exit drug test and the student's eligibility is restored by the organization.

b.  Should the member school or student be dissatisfied with the decision of the commissioner, the school may pursue the appeal before the organization's board of directors and must do so at the request of the student. The board of directors may require the student to complete the prescribed penalty, reduce the prescribed penalty by one-half, or provide complete relief from the prescribed penalty. Regardless of the decision of the board of directors, the student shall remain ineligible until the student tests negative on an exit drug test and the student's eligibility is restored by the organization. The decision of the board of directors on each appeal shall be final.

c.  Technical experts may serve as consultants to both the organization's commissioner and its board of directors in connection with such appeals.

(i)  The result of a drug test under this subsection shall not be admissible as evidence in a criminal prosecution.

(j)  No later than October 1, 2008, the organization shall submit to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a report on the results of the program. The report shall include statistics on the number of students tested; the number of violations; the number of challenges and their results; the number of appeals and their dispositions; and the costs incurred by the organization in the administration of the program, including attorney's fees and other expenses of litigation.

(k)  The organization, members of its board of directors, and its employees and member schools and their employees are exempt from civil liability arising from any act or omission in connection with the program conducted under this subsection. The Department of Legal Affairs shall defend the organization, members of its board of directors, and its employees and member schools and their employees in any action against such parties arising from any such act or omission. In providing such defense, the Department of Legal Affairs may employ or utilize the legal services of outside counsel.

(l)  The program shall be conducted to the extent funded by the Legislature. In order to conduct the program within appropriated funds, the organization is authorized to implement the program in only one or two of the named sports. All expenses of the program shall be paid with funds appropriated by the Legislature. Such expenses shall include, but not be limited to, all fees and expenses charged by the testing agency for administrative services, specimen collection services, and specimen analysis; all administrative expenses incurred by the organization in the facilitation of the program; and all attorney's fees and other expenses of litigation resulting from legal challenges related to the program.

(m)  This subsection shall stand repealed on October 2, 2008, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

History.--s. 293, ch. 2002-387; s. 2, ch. 2003-129; s. 70, ch. 2003-416; s. 1, ch. 2007-192; s. 1, ch. 2007-193.