Senate Bill 73 Alabama 2026 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Donnie ChesteenSenator

Republican

Session

2026 Regular Session

Title

Public K-12 schools; membership in athletic associations with boards of certain composition, that enforce certain rules, prohibited; Legislative Council authorization of entities' rulemaking, permitted

Summary

SB73 would bar public K-12 schools from joining athletic associations whose boards are at least 50% appointed by state leaders and that enforce student-athlete eligibility rules not adopted under Alabama's Administrative Procedure Act, and it would allow the Legislative Council to authorize voluntary APA-rulemaking by any entity (effective October 1, 2026).

What This Bill Does

If enacted, public K-12 schools would not be members of an athletic association whose governing body (including a central board of control) is composed of at least 50 percent members appointed by the Governor, the Speaker of the House, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, or the Lieutenant Governor, with a distribution of four Governor appointees, four Speaker appointees, four PPToF appointees, and three Lieutenant Governor appointees. The bill also bars membership in associations that enforce eligibility rules for student-athletes that were not adopted under the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act. It authorizes the Legislative Council to let any entity voluntarily adopt rules under the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act, and the act would take effect on October 1, 2026.

Who It Affects

• Public K-12 schools in Alabama — would be prohibited from joining certain athletic associations that fail to meet the board composition and APA-rule standards.
• Athletic associations and their governing boards — would need to adjust to meet the specified governance requirements or risk losing public-school membership; entities could pursue APA-rulemaking if authorized by the Legislative Council.

Key Provisions

• Public K-12 schools may not be a member of an athletic association unless the association's governing body (including the central board of control) is comprised of at least 50 percent members appointed by the Governor, the Speaker of the House, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, or the Lieutenant Governor, with exactly four Governor appointments, four Speaker appointments, four PPT appointments, and three Lieutenant Governor appointments.
• The Legislative Council may authorize any entity to voluntarily adopt rules pursuant to the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act, and the act becomes effective October 1, 2026.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 12, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Education