Senate Bill 636
Senate Bill 636
SESSION 2023
S 1
SENATE BILL 636
1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
2 AN ACT TO REVISE OVERSIGHT OF HIGH SCHOOL INTERSCHOLASTIC ATHLETICS.
3 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
4
5 PART I. REVISE OVERSIGHT OF HIGH SCHOOL INTERSCHOLASTIC
6 ATHLETICS
7 SECTION 1.(a) Article 29E of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes reads as
8 rewritten:
9 "Article 29E.
10 "High School Interscholastic Athletic Activities.
11 "Part 1. Definitions.
12 "§ 115C-407.50. Definitions.
13 The following definitions apply in this Article:
14 (1) Administering organization. – A nonprofit organization that has entered into
15 and is in compliance with a memorandum of understanding with the State
16 Board of Education to administer and enforce the adopted rules and
17 requirements of this Article for interscholastic athletic activities at the high
18 school level.
19 …
20 (6) Parent. – The parent or legal guardian of a student participating or seeking to
21 participate in interscholastic athletic activities.
22 (7) Participating school. – A high school that elects to offer interscholastic athletic
23 activities.
24 "Part 2. Oversight of Interscholastic Athletic Activities.
25 "§ 115C-407.55. Rules for high school interscholastic athletic activities.
26 The State Board of Education shall adopt rules governing high school interscholastic athletic
27 activities conducted by public school units that include the following:
28 (1) Student participation rules. – These rules shall govern student eligibility to
29 participate in interscholastic athletic activities and activities. The adoption of
30 these rules shall not be delegated to an administering organization. The rules
31 shall include, at a minimum, the following:
32 a. academic standards, Academic standards.
33 b. enrollment Enrollment and transfer requirements, requirements,
34 including the following:
35 1. A student who is not domiciled in a local school administrative
36 unit but enrolls in that unit pursuant to G.S. 115C-366(d) shall
*S636-v-1*
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2023
1 not be eligible to participate in interscholastic athletic activities
2 in that unit if the student's enrollment in that unit is solely for
3 athletic participation purposes. A student determined to be
4 ineligible under this sub-sub-subdivision shall be ineligible to
5 participate in postseason play for one year following discovery
6 of the violation.
7 2. A student who receives priority enrollment as the child of a
8 full-time employee of a charter school pursuant to
9 G.S. 115C-218.45(f)(3) shall not be eligible to participate in
10 interscholastic athletics for that charter school if the Office of
11 Charter Schools determines that the parent's enrollment was a
12 fraudulent basis for the student's priority enrollment. A student
13 determined to be ineligible under this sub-sub-subdivision
14 shall be ineligible to participate in postseason play for one year
15 following discovery of the violation.
16 c. attendance requirements, Attendance requirements.
17 d. medical Medical eligibility requirements, requirements.
18 e. Biological participation requirements. The rule shall require at least
19 the following:
20 1. Interscholastic teams or sports shall be designated as one of the
21 following based on biological sex:
22 I. Males, men, or boys.
23 II. Females, women, or girls.
24 III. Coed or mixed.
25 2. Interscholastic athletic activities designated for females,
26 women, or girls shall not be open to students of the male sex.
27 3. Sex shall be recognized based solely on a person's reproductive
28 biology and genetics at birth.
29 f. recruiting limitations, Recruiting limitations.
30 g. and hardship exceptions.Hardship exceptions.
31 (2) Student health and safety rules. – These rules shall govern requirements to
32 ensure student health and safety during participation in interscholastic athletic
33 activities, including rules related to concussions and emergency action plans
34 as required by G.S. 115C-12(23).G.S. 115C-407.57 and G.S. 115C-407.58.
35 The adoption of these rules shall not be delegated to an administering
36 organization.
37 (3) Penalty rules. – These rules shall establish a system of demerits for infractions
38 of student participation rules and gameplay rules which may result in
39 reprimands, probations, suspensions, forfeitures of contests, forfeitures of
40 titles, and disqualifications. disqualifications but shall not result in monetary
41 penalties of any kind. The State Board may by rule delegate the authority to
42 establish all or a portion of the penalty rules to an administering organization.
43 (4) Appeals rules. – These rules shall establish an appeals process that provides
44 due process to students, parents, and participating schools for enforcement of
45 rules that provides for rules. The adoption of these rules may not be delegated
46 to an administering organization. The rules shall require the following:
47 a. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall appoint an independent
48 appeals board, board.
49 b. notice Notice of the infraction and the appeals process shall be
50 provided to the party that receives the penalty, penalty.