Senate passes SC High School League bill, but SCHSL opposes latest changes
A bill that would change how the S.C. High School League is structured and governed is closer to becoming a reality.
On Thursday, the state Senate voted 24-17 in a third and final reading to pass House Bill 4163. The bill must now go back to the S.C. House for approval because it was amended in a Senate subcommittee. Exactly when the House will take up the bill again wasn’t immediately known.
Thursday’s vote comes a month after the S.C. House of Representatives voted 112-0 to pass its version of the bill. The legislation would still have to be signed by Gov. Henry McMaster before it goes into effect, which wouldn’t be until July 1, 2027.
In its original form, House Bill 4163 would have abolished the SCHSL and created a state-run S.C. High School Athletic Association. Instead, the S.C. High School League is on track to stay in place but with different ways it must operate.
The SCHSL, however, appears to be opposed to the Senate’s amended version of the legislation.
SCHSL commissioner Jerome Singleton sent out an email to state’s athletic directors Thursday morning, urging them to speak out to state senators in opposition of the bill.
“I respectfully ask that you contact your Senate members and urge them to vote NO on the third reading of H.4163,” Singleton wrote.
Singleton’s email Thursday said that the “South Carolina High School League is already governed by an Executive Committee structure that closely resembles the framework outlined in the legislation, including four legislative appointee positions that have not yet been filled.“
In the amended bill, the league can be audited by the S.C. Legislative Audit Council and be subject to oversight in the same manner as state agencies. The commissioner’s contract can’t exceed three years.
Ronnie Sabb, D-Williamsburg, voted no and spoke out Thursday against the bill, which has been talked about in some form for more than a decade. The sticking point for Sabb was that the state Legislature would be given a measure of oversight over the league, which has been in existence for more than 100 years.
“When we give ourselves oversight, we give ourselves ownership,” Sabb said. “It sends to the general public that the General Assembly is running athletics in our state. I don’t think that is where we should land on this. The High School League isn’t going to get everything right and there are some things we could do to help them to do things better.
“... I just don’t think it is a good idea. But I understand why we got here and why we are here. But my hope prayerfully is that it works out ... and we have done no harm.”
In the bill, some of the league’s current rules and structure that are part of the annual budget proviso would be more formalized, including equal treatment for private and charter school and teams; no name, image and likeness for high school athletes; a multiplier system for competitive balance; one-time transfer for middle and high school students; and the league’s appellate panel stays in place.
“Current SCHSL bylaws already reflect and incorporate the annual state budget proviso changes,” Singleton wrote to member schools Thursday.
If the S.C. House rejects the Senate amendments, the legislation would then move to a conference committee that includes three House members and three from the Senate.
“If the bill proceeds to a conference committee, I encourage you to also urge Senate leadership and Senate conferees to support the Senate version of H.4163 during conference negotiations,” Singleton said in his memo.
Under the amended bill approved by the S.C. Senate, there would be a 23-member executive committee. That’s the same amount of people the SCHSL approved in March but 10 more than was passed by the S.C. House. The executive committee is the league’s governing body, although coaches and athletic leadership at SCHSL member schools are involved in amendments and bringing about change.
The new-look committee would have one principal, one superintendent and one athletic director from each of the state’s five athletic classifications. There would also be an appointee by the superintendent of education. And there would be a middle school representative that has to be a superintendent, principal or athletic director.
There would be a private school and charter school representative that needs to be a superintendent, principal or athletic director. Those representatives would serve three-year terms, and no executive committee member can serve more than two consecutive three-year terms. The executive committee chairman would be voted on by membership and serve a two-year term.
This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 4:05 PM with the headline "Senate passes SC High School League bill, but SCHSL opposes latest changes."
