California Passes First Legal Test In Attempt To Ban Tackle Football For Kids Under 12

California lawmakers seeking to ban tackle football for children under 12 years old earned a victory on Wednesday, but the war is far from over.

The bill that would ban tackle football for pre-teens in the state, which was authored by Democratic Assembly member Kevin McCarty, had its first public hearing before a legislative committee on Wednesday. The Assembly committee that regulates sports voted 5-2 to send the bill to the full chamber.

While the bill cleared its first hurdle, there are larger ones ahead. Now the full Assembly will vote on the bill and only has until January to approve it. If it votes to approve the bill it then goes to the Senate before Gov. Gavin Newsom would have the final say if it ultimately lands on his desk.

According to the AP, the ban, if passed, would be gradually phased in, prohibiting children under six starting in 2025, under 10 in 2027 and those under 12 in 2029.

California state law already bans full-contact practices for high school and youth football teams during the offseason and limits teams to two practices per week during both the preseason and regular season.

This also isn't the first time California lawmakers have attempted to ban tackle football.

San Diego Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher introduced a bill in 2018 that would have banned organized tackle football for kids before reaching high school in California. This newly introduced bill has taken an even more drastic step by targeting kids 12 years and younger.

According to Fox News, tackle football at the high school level in California has been declining with participation dropping more than 18% from 2015 to 2022. Interestingly enough, football participation increased by 5% in 2023.

No state has banned tackle football, but lawmakers in Illinois and New York have attempted to do so in years past.