NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A3678A
SPONSOR: Stirpe
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the education law, in relation to
prohibiting school districts from disallowing home-schooled students
from participating in district interscholastic sports
 
PURPOSE:
To allow home-schooled students to participate in interscholastic
athletics.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends the education law by adding a new section 1501-d, which
prohibits school districts from disallowing home-schooled students from
participating in the district's interscholastic sports, and requires
districts to make provision for such participation.
Section 2 provides that the act shall take effect immediately.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, home-schooled students may be prohibited from participating
in interscholastic sports even though they are entitled to attend the
schools that have the sport. It is fundamentally unfair to prohibit
home-schooled students from participating in an important aspect of
childhood development merely because their parents or guardians choose
to home school them. The students have every right to attend the school,
and there is no reduction is school taxes for parents or guardians who
home-school their children, so there is no legitimate reason to prohibit
home-schooled students from participating in interscholastic sports
within the district. In fact, not all districts have such a prohibition,
but this bill is necessary because some districts do have such a prohi-
bition.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2013-2014 Referred to Education
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3678--A
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 27, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. STIRPE, RA, THIELE, TENNEY, RAIA, CROUCH, BROOK-
KRASNY, PEOPLES-STOKES, BLANKENBUSH, SEPULVEDA, GRAF, WOZNIAK,
GOODELL, WOERNER, McDONOUGH -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CRESPO,
GIGLIO, KEARNS, MAGEE, McDONALD, McLAUGHLIN, PALMESANO -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Education -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to prohibiting school
districts from disallowing home-schooled students from participating
in district interscholastic sports
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 1501-d
2 to read as follows:
3 § 1501-d. Home-schooled students; interscholastic sports. Notwith-
4 standing any other provision of law to the contrary, boards of education
5 of school districts are prohibited from disallowing home-schooled
6 students from participating in the district's interscholastic sports,
7 and shall make provision for such participation in accordance with the
8 following:
9 (1) Home-schooled students shall not be denied by a school district
10 the opportunity to participate in all interscholastic activities if the
11 student fulfills the following conditions:
12 (a) The student must meet all school district physical examination,
13 immunization, and age eligibility requirements with the exception of:
14 (i) The school district's school or class attendance requirements; and
15 (ii) The class requirements of the voluntary association administering
16 interscholastic activities.
17 (b) (i) The student must achieve a minimum score on a standardized
18 achievement test permitted under section 100.10 of the commissioner's
19 regulations. The examination shall be taken at the end of each school
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06777-02-5
A. 3678--A 2
1 year and shall be used to determine eligibility for the following year.
2 The minimum, composite test score that a student must achieve shall
3 place the student at or above the thirty-fourth percentile based on
4 national norms. The parent or legal guardian shall submit the examina-
5 tion results to the school district; or
6 (ii) A school district may adopt alternative requirements, in consul-
7 tation with the parent or legal guardian of a home-schooled student,
8 that a student must meet to participate in interscholastic activities,
9 including but not limited to a requirement that a student submit a port-
10 folio of work samples to a school district committee for review to
11 determine whether a student is eligible to participate in interscholas-
12 tic activities.
13 (c) The home-schooled student shall be required to fulfill the same
14 responsibilities and standards of behavior and performance, including
15 related class or practice requirements, of other students participating
16 in the interscholastic activity of the team or squad and shall be
17 required to meet the same standards for acceptance on the team or squad.
18 The home school student must also comply with all public school require-
19 ments during the time of participation.
20 (d) A home-schooled student participating in interscholastic activ-
21 ities must reside within the attendance boundaries of the school for
22 which the student participates.
23 (e) Transportation must be provided by the parent or guardian of the
24 student. The student may use the same transportation as all other
25 students in the school unit, as long as additional expenses are not
26 incurred.
27 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.