IHSA Announcements
February 4, 1999
IHSA Delays "Authenticating Mark" Rule
BLOOMINGTON —
The Board of Directors of the Illinois High School Association voted on January 25, 1999, to delay IHSA member schools' compliance with a mandate appearing in the playing rule books of the National Federation of State High School Associations for the 1999-2000 school year that high school contests may only be played if the National Federation "Authenticating Mark" appears on the puck or the ball used in the contest.
The Board's action delays schools' compliance on any level in any sport until not earlier than the 2000-01 school year. A decision regarding future compliance will be made at a date to be determined by the Board.
Without the Board's action, the authenticating mark would have been required for IHSA member school's competition at the varsity and sub-varsity levels in ice hockey, baseball, basketball, football, soccer, softball and volleyball; and schools would have been forced to use up existing inventories in practices.
It is the National Federation's intent that manufacturers' products pass independent testing at the manufacturer's expense, and that the manufacturer pay the National Federation 25 cents per inflated ball and 25 cents per dozen pucks, baseballs and softballs. However, the National Federation has advised its Board of Directors the overall markup will be $1 to $2 per inflated ball or dozen.
The National Federation projects the additional cost to schools to be $20 per year on average. Others, including IHSA member school athletic administrators, project the cost will average up to $250 per year or more, depending on the amount of product purchased and the total of pass-through costs to schools by manufacturers, distributors and dealers. Most reaction to the program from manufacturers, dealers, officials and athletic directors is mildly to strongly negative.
The National Federation developed this initiative as a means to generate manufacturers' support of high school athletics; but it is apparent the result will be that local schools, not manufacturers, will subsidize the National Federation through this program.
A secondary purpose of the program, to standardize balls and pucks, is seen as unnecessary because such standardization already exists through manufacturers' compliance with specifications of balls and pucks stated in National Federation rules prior to the additional requirement that the product carry the authenticating mark.
Last October, members of the National Federation Board of Directors expressed concerns regarding the administration of the NFHS authenticating mark program. A motion to delay the implementation was defeated. However, the Board of Directors did adopt the policy that state associations would have broad leeway to work with schools, manufacturers, and dealers to implement the program in a way that minimizes hardship to all interested parties. The IHSA Board of Directors acted pursuant to that policy.