Wis. Legislature AB 76

[Ghetto]

Throwing around your UWW alum status!

I so rarely get to use my "Harvard of the midwest" power. 

[Dale Einerson]

Throwing around your UWW alum status!

Hey!  You picking on my fellow alum?

[Ghetto]

Here is the response I received today....

Thank you for taking the time to contact Rep. Kuglitsch's office. Representative Kuglitsch is on the floor today, but I wanted to shed some light on the status of AB 76.

As you may know, the bill was referred to the Assembly Committee on State Affairs and Government Operations. Earlier this week, the office spoke with the author of the legislation and the Chairman of the committee. Both have expressed no interest in moving the legislation at this time. The author has stated that they intend to exempt wrestling and karate from AB 76 prior to bringing this bill up for a vote. This means you will see no changes to your current practice. Without the exemption, AB 76 could cause detrimental harm to the sport in our state. Rep. Kuglitsch will continue to work with the author and the committee chairman to protect wrestling in Wisconsin.

Thanks again for taking the time to contact the office and we hope to hear from you soon.

Regards,

Matthew Spencer
Office of Representative Mike Kuglitsch
(608) 267-5158

[maggie]

The Board of Control gave first consideration of an Executive Staff plan to suspend membership dues and fees for two years, advanced a number of Constitutional amendments to the Annual Meeting for a membership vote and approved renewal of several partnership agreements at its meeting on March 6 in Madison.

The Board will take final action on a proposal to suspend dues and fees for all member schools at its April meeting. The plan is intended to further assist member schools in maintaining interscholastic athletic programs and opportunities. The Association returns nearly $2.7 million to its members through tournament host fees and partial reimbursements for State Tournament participation.

On other action items, the Board authorized an extension of the agreement with Select Sport America as the official soccer ball partner of the WIAA Tournaments through 2019. The deal idenitifies the "Royale" soccer ball as the official soccer ball of the WIAA and the "Numero 10" as the official practice ball of the WIAA. The "Royale" is the ball exclusively used for the WIAA sectionals and State tournaments.

The Board also approved a two-year extension of the agreement with Wisconsin Lutheran College in Milwaukee as the home of the State Boys Volleyball Tournament through 2016. Wisconsin Lutheran has served as the host site of the boys tournament since 2008.

The Board voted to advance 10 amendments to the WIAA Constitution, Bylaws and Rules of Eligibility. The membership will vote on the amendments at its April 22 Annual Meeting.

Two amendments advanced to the Annual Meeting without a position of either support or opposition by the Board attempt to address tournament competitive balance perceptions. The first is a competitive equity ad-hoc committee recommendation to implement a success factor plan that promotes programs, which have experienced significant tournament success over a three-year span, to a higher division. For more information on the success factor plan, access the Competitive Equity option within the "Schools" drop-down menu on the WIAA website.

The second amendment attempting to address competitive equity, which was advanced by membership petition, would utilize a reducer to member schools' third Friday of September enrollment figure for competition, including the Tournaments Series where necessary.

Related to Constitution amendments that are advanced to the membership through petitions, the Board advanced and supported an amendment that would designate the first Friday in January as a deadline in which amendments may be brought to the membership via petition to allow discussion and committee review prior to the Annual Meeting.

The membership will also determine the fate of amendment that will require member schools to sponsor and continue to sustain at least one sport to maintain membership in the Association, and another amendment that will eliminate the restitution option available to the Board of Control. Despite advancing the restitution option to the membership for a vote, the Board voted unanimously in opposition of the proposal.

A proposed amendment that impacts the membership's Bylaws would require all coaches, whether paid or unpaid, to be certified and maintain certification in first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification and AED operation. Beginning with the 2016-17 school year, this requirement must be met before coaches start their second year of coaching.

Four amendments to be voted on would impact the Rules of Eligibility. All but one received Board support for adoption. The first would allow students to participate in skill contests during the season in the same sport, which the Board supported for adoption. A second amendment with Board approval would open unlimited non-school coaching contact to all sports except football for the period between the last day of school to the first day of school. The third amendment would allow an athlete to participate in up to two nonschool contests during the regular school sport season in the same sport. The allowance would require local school administration approval, and the contests will count against the athlete's individual participation limit. This change would not alter the exceptional athlete provision or the restriction on nonschool participation during the WIAA Tournament Series.

A fourth amendment that was advanced but did not receive Board support would allow basketball coaches to provide an hour of individual instruction for up to six basketball players at one time in the gym using school resources.

The membership of the WIAA oversees interscholastic athletic programs for 505 senior high schools and 46 junior high/middle level schools in its membership. It will sponsor 24 championship tournament series in 2014-15. For more information, visit the WIAA website at www.wiaawi.org.

[Ghetto]

That last post has nothing to do with the bill. It's a WIAA memo that came out today.

[ramjet]

But this is: Rep. Mursau emailed me today with followup to our phone conversation and indicated this Bill will be fixed and appreciated all the response from the wrestling community...

[maggie]

Wasn't implicated yet....

[wrestling for fun]

I rec'd this a few minutes ago.

Tom,

I passed along your concerns to the authors of the bill and they assured me that if the bill comes up for a hearing they would address your concerns with either a new version of the bill or an amendment to the bill.

Best regards,

Thomas Weatherston
State Representative
62nd Assembly District

[TomM]

DEATH IN THE RING | A JOURNAL SENTINEL WATCHDOG UPDATE
Combat sports bill would require 4 new state employees, report says
http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/watchdogreports/combat-sports-bill-would-require-4-new-state-employees-report-says-b99468164z1-297438231.html

A law regulating all unarmed combat sports in Wisconsin would require 8,000 hours a year of additional work hours and four new state employees at a cost of $360,700 annually, a fiscal impact statement released this week found.

The author of the measure < http://media.jrn.com/images/b99468164z.1_20150324160354_000_gr3afgj8.1-0.jpg Rep. Joel Kleefisch > said changes are in the works that will narrow the scope and, he says, negate the need for new employees.

"It is not our intent to overregulate sporting events. However, we want to create an equal playing field for those sports that have potential of harmful or fatal blows to the head," Rep. Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc) said.

The bipartisan bill was introduced following the death of Dennis Munson Jr., who collapsed after his amateur debut in an unregulated kickboxing bout at the Eagles Club in Milwaukee last March. Munson, 24, died at the hospital hours later from what the medical examiner would rule were complications as a result of head trauma.

The push to change state law comes after a Journal Sentinel investigation into unregulated combat sports uncovered gaps in safety at such fights. Officials in charge of Munson's three-round fight failed to stop the match despite what a dozen independent experts who reviewed a video of the match said were obvious signs of distress in Munson.

Wisconsin regulates boxing and mixed martial arts, which combines various disciplines including kickboxing, but does not regulate kickboxing as a stand-alone sport.

The state Department of Safety and Professional Services currently has one employee responsible for overseeing MMA and boxing, but it is only 70% of his job. He is assisted by a part-time limited-term employee.

The fiscal impact statement issued this week says the proposed bill, as currently worded, would have a "significant" impact on the department, requiring creation of 58 new credential applications.

Roufusport, the gym where Munson fought and the promoter of the fight after which he died, has come out against the bill in its initial form, saying it would hurt small karate and mixed martial arts businesses.

Kleefisch said he has met with officials from Roufusport and other gyms and there appears to be a consensus that all professional fights with the possibility of blows to the head should be regulated by the state. He said an amendment to the bill will clearly define the fights to be regulated. Kleefisch said he was told the changes to the bill will mean the department will not need to add staff to cover the additional fights.

Rep. Jonathan Brostoff (D-Milwaukee), a co-sponsor, said he is concerned the state already is stretched thin in terms of its regulators, without adding new kinds of fights to regulate. He said he is open to listening to arguments but he envisions a need for more help.

"To expand the scope of regulation, you are going to need more workers," he said. "The popularity of this sport is not decreasing. Having the same number of people for more work doesn't make sense to me."

The bill is waiting for a hearing in an Assembly committee. Last week, state Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) became a co-sponsor.

State regulators are conducting separate investigations into the ringside doctor, Carlos Feliciano, who worked the Munson fight, and Curtis Ambulance, which had a crew working the event. The City of Milwaukee also issued citations against promoters and venue operators of two shows for violating the city's ban against "ultimate fighting."

Read the investigation

To read the entire Death in the Ring investigation and see the video of the fight, go to jsonline.com/kickboxdeath