Alabama House approves regulations for AHSAA classification on English language learners

The Alabama House of Representatives passed a bill Tuesday that would exclude certain English language learner (ELL) students from a public school’s average daily membership when determining athletic competition classification. 

HB 298, sponsored by Rep. Brock Colvin, R-Albertville, passed 72-1 with 29 abstentions and many floor amendments. 

“So it’s not saying they can’t play. I would never support that. It’s just saying, they’d only count for that classification if they do participate,” Colvin said. 

The chamber adopted a committee substitute that only allowed schools where ELL students make up 15% or more of its average daily membership (ADM) to have their classification adjusted. 

“That concern came from school systems under 15, saying it wasn’t covered. And I agree, every school needs to be able to utilize the formula,” Colvin said.

But the first amendment by Rep. Danny Crawford, R-Athens, allows any schools to adjust their classification regardless of how many ELL students the school has. 

“So the fairest thing to do is to treat everybody the same and not have winners and losers,” Crawford said.

The second amendment by Rep. Chris Blackshear, R-Smiths Station, changed the effective date to the 2026-27 school year, instead of the 2025-26 school year. He said that classifications are determined by the ADM from the previous year.

“So all this amendment does is make sure that if this piece of legislation passes, it will not impact the 2025-2026 athletic calendar year,” Blackshear said. 

The third and final amendment by Rep. Leigh Hulsey, R-Helena, requires the governing body of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) to have two additional non-voting members from the Legislature. The Speaker of the House will appoint a member from the minority party and the Senate President Pro Tempore will appoint a member of the majority party to the AHSAA board.

“I’m just trying to start getting a little bit of oversight there,” Hulsey said.

Rep. Ginny Shaver, R-Leesburg, said a school in her district dissolved their varsity football program because the school was classified as a 5A school when she said it should have been 2A. She said the number of ELL students in the district changed the classification.

“My schools there are the poster children for exactly what you’re talking about,” she said. “It’s a very big concern, there’s a lot of injury and low participation. That’s why they’ve not been able to have a varsity program for quite some time now.”

Crossville High School in DeKalb County has not had a varsity football team since 2022, but is set to return in 2026, according to the county’s local news outlet the Times-Journal. 

Heath Harmon, executive director of the AHSAA, said in a statement that he is disappointed by the legislation because it would discourage ELL students from participating in sports in the name of keeping a lower classification. He also said the third amendment on the legislation would make the AHSAA the only private association with mandated political representation.

“We strive to keep politics out of the boardroom and focus on doing what is best for all student athletes,” he wrote in the statement. “As an Association, we are committed to supporting all member schools in all sports in addition to promoting participation. This bill is in direct opposition to those commitments.”

Rep. Alan Baker, R-Brewton, was the lone “no” vote on the legislation. He said in an interview that he does not believe the Legislature should be involved in the AHSAA’s policies.

“I don’t feel the Legislature should be getting involved in the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s policies no more than I feel Congress should be involved in the NCAA and their policies as well,” he said. “It’s sort of a standard I feel at both levels of government.”

The bill goes to the Senate. There are four legislative days left in the 2025 session.