Vetoed by Governor Tom Wolf

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that authorizes individual school districts to make decisions surrounding sports and extracurriculars during the pandemic.

Highlights:

• Specifies that the governing authority of a school district has the exclusive authority to determine whether to hold school sports activities, including competitions, intramural play and scrimmages, and other in-person extracurricular activities during the 2020-2021 school year (Sec. 1).

• Prohibits a person who has any form of COVID-19 in a transmissible stage from being permitted inside a school or from participating in-person in any sports or extracurricular activities (Sec. 1).

• Requires a school district to develop an athletic, health, and safety plan addressing school sports and other in-person extracurricular activities during the 2020-2021 school year, and must include the following in the plan (Sec. 1):

• Safety protocols for permitting visitors and spectators to attend sports and in-person extracurricular activities; 

• Limits on gatherings for indoor and outdoor sports and in-person extracurricular activities to ensure social distancing; 

• Protocols for sports consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Consideration for Youth Sports; 

• Methods of ensuring that social distancing and other safety measures are in place for students, staff, and spectators; and

• Rules that will be enforced to ensure that the requirements of section 1416.1 are met.

• Requires a school district to post the athletic, health, and safety plan on its website and to submit the plan to the department of education (Sec. 1).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that authorizes individual school districts to make decisions surrounding sports and extracurriculars during the pandemic, effective immediately.

Highlights:

• Specifies that the governing authority of a school district has the exclusive authority to determine whether to hold school sports activities, including competitions, intramural play and scrimmages, and other in-person extracurricular activities during the 2020-2021 school year (Sec. 1).

• Prohibits a person who has any form of COVID-19 in a transmissible stage from being permitted inside a school or from participating in-person in any sports or extracurricular activities (Sec. 1).

• Requires a school district to develop an athletic, health, and safety plan addressing school sports and other in-person extracurricular activities during the 2020-2021 school year, and must include the following in the plan (Sec. 1):

• Safety protocols for permitting visitors and spectators to attend sports and in-person extracurricular activities; 

• Limits on gatherings for indoor and outdoor sports and in-person extracurricular activities to ensure social distancing; 

• Protocols for sports consistent with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Consideration for Youth Sports; 

• Methods of ensuring that social distancing and other safety measures are in place for students, staff, and spectators; and

• Rules that will be enforced to ensure that the requirements of section 1416.1 are met.

• Requires a school district to post the athletic, health, and safety plan on its website and to submit the plan to the department of education (Sec. 1).

Full Bill Text