Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth condemned the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) over their new rule that requires student-athletes who transfer schools using new school choice funds to sit out for one year before competing.

Under the CHOOSE Act, families can receive a $7,000 ESA to enter their student into a private or public school at the beginning of the next academic year

The AHSAA policy specifies that students receiving “financial aid or financial assistance” are ineligible for one year. Aid includes Alabama Scholarship funds, tuition remission, school choice program funds, and other assistance.

“The same Alabama High School Athletic Association responsible for making sure teams do not break the rules is BREAKING THE LAW by denying eligibility to CHOOSE Act students,” Ainsworth posted Thursday. “I’ll offer legislation to strip AHSAA of its power and give it to an entity that will follow the law.”

Ainsworth believes the association is going against the law because the CHOOSE Act specifically states that, “Nothing shall affect or change the athletic eligibility of student athletes governed by the A-H-S-A-A or similar association.”

Ainsworth isn’t the only state lawmaker to threaten action against the AHSAA over this policy change.

At the request of State Sen. Chris Elliott (R-Josephine), Othni Lathram, Director of the Legislative Services Agency, issued a memorandum concluding that the AHSAA policy conflicts with state law.

“The Legislative intent that the availability of these educational options not be foreclosed based on athletic considerations could not have been more clear,” Lathram wrote. “The intent is clear: a student’s eligibility to participate in school sports shall not be impacted by a transfer via the CHOOSE Act.”

State Rep. Danny Garrett (R-Trussville) also criticized the new rule, saying, “This is just not fair to the children. It is certainly not fair to these families. It’s also a violation of the law.”

“We are very much aware what their rules were, what they are, and we do not want to create a loophole around those rules. But we didn’t want someone using these funds to be, you know, subject to ineligibility,” Garrett added. “What’s unfortunate is you’ve got kids who’ve been practicing all summer long, and they were told the day before the first game, or you can’t play, or they’ve been told after the first game, now you can’t play. Because actually, this letter did not come out until I think it was the day before the season started.”

Under the current AHSAA policy, exceptions apply only to dependent children of active-duty military families moving under official orders and to first-time seventh graders enrolling at a new school.

The memo further stated that students would regain eligibility after one full year of enrollment if all other requirements are met.

Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yaffee