HB5406ham002 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Rep. Janet Yang Rohr

Filed: 4/12/2024

10300HB5406ham002 LRB103 37214 RJT 72242 a

AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 5406

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 5406, AS AMENDED, by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The School Code is amended by adding Sections 10-20.87 and 34-18.87 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/10-20.87 new)

Sec. 10-20.87. Athletic practice time limits.

(a) In this Section:

"Athletics" means any activity that is overseen as part of a school's athletic department.

"Practice" means:

(1) any school team or individual activity organized by the coach or a member of the athletics staff that is intended to maintain or improve an athlete's skill proficiency in a sport;

(2) any other required coach-directed or supervised school team or individual activity or instruction for a specific sport; or

(3) any other required team or individual instruction for a specific sport organized or supervised by any team member or anyone else associated with the high school athletics program, team, or school.

(b) For the benefit of the physical and mental health of athletes, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, a school board shall adopt a policy to govern the maximum time spent by students for all practices, games, or contests by a high school athletics program or team during the school year.

(c) A school board may adopt its own guidelines under this Section, including rules set forth by an association or other entity that has as one of its purposes promoting, sponsoring, regulating, or in any manner providing for interscholastic athletics or any form of athletic competition among high schools and high school students within this State, or may adopt the following guidelines:

(1) A team may be allowed no more than 18 hours of practice time per week and no more than 4 hours of practice time in any single day.

(2) For golf only, an 18-hole round of golf shall count, at most, as 4 hours of practice time.

(3) Any competition day shall count as 3 hours of practice no matter the length of the competition. Additional practice time may continue for one hour after the competition, which shall include post-competition cool-downs, stretching, and team discussion.

(4) An outside organizational activity may not be used to circumvent this subsection (c).

(5) Team captains or other team leaders, such as upperclassmen, may not be used to circumvent this subsection (c) and may not organize practice to circumvent this subsection (c). Required student-led practices may occur but shall count toward the practice limitation under this subsection (c).

(6) Other optional activities, including, but not limited to, team dinners and team building, may not be considered practice time if the optional activities do not fall under the definition of "practice" under subsection (a).

(7) More stringent guidelines from an interscholastic athletic association or other entity shall supersede the athletic practice time limits.

(8) The school board or principal may approve each exception for individual practices or competitions that result in practice or competition times that exceed the limits set forth in paragraph (1).

(105 ILCS 5/34-18.87 new)

Sec. 34-18.87. Athletic practice time limits.

(a) In this Section:

"Athletics" means any activity that is overseen as part of a school's athletic department.

"Practice" means:

(1) any school team or individual activity organized by the coach or a member of the athletics staff that is intended to maintain or improve an athlete's skill proficiency in a sport;

(2) any other required coach-directed or supervised school team or individual activity or instruction for a specific sport; or

(3) any other required team or individual instruction for a specific sport organized or supervised by any team member or anyone else associated with the high school athletics program, team, or school.

(b) For the benefit of the physical and mental health of athletes, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, the school board shall adopt a policy to govern the maximum time spent by students for all practices, games, or contests by a high school athletics program or team during the school year.

(c) The school board may adopt its own guidelines under this Section, including rules set forth by an association or other entity that has as one of its purposes promoting, sponsoring, regulating, or in any manner providing for interscholastic athletics or any form of athletic competition among high schools and high school students within this State, or may adopt the following guidelines:

(1) A team may be allowed no more than 18 hours of practice time per week and no more than 4 hours of practice time in any single day.

(2) For golf only, an 18-hole round of golf shall count, at most, as 4 hours of practice time.

(3) Any competition day shall count as 3 hours of practice no matter the length of the competition. Additional practice time may continue for one hour after the competition, which shall include post-competition cool-downs, stretching, and team discussion.

(4) An outside organizational activity may not be used to circumvent this subsection (c).

(5) Team captains or other team leaders, such as upperclassmen, may not be used to circumvent this subsection (c) and may not organize practice to circumvent this subsection (c). Required student-led practices may occur but shall count toward the practice limitation under this subsection (c).

(6) Other optional activities, including, but not limited to, team dinners and team building, may not be considered practice time if the optional activities do not fall under the definition of "practice" under subsection (a).

(7) More stringent guidelines from an interscholastic athletic association or other entity shall supersede the athletic practice time limits.

(8) The school board or principal may approve each exception for individual practices or competitions that result in practice or competition times that exceed the limits set forth in paragraph (1).

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".