Hwy17

This looks like a legit move to me, not team shopping.

Short answer to your last 2 questions, no. Not that I follow gymnastics that closely but from what I understand, the balance beam and uneven bars were designed for women because they carry more of their weight and have more strength in their lower body. Whereas male apparatuses are all about upper body strength.

Those male gymnastics apparatuses require a lot of strength.

I believe he's starting to get it

Girls playing boys football isn't new. I know we had 2 or 3, and not kickers. As for gymnastics there are certain gender specific apparatuses; i.e. balance beam for females; high bar, rings, pomal horse for males.

You're Welcome

And that's how our system has evolved. Pass a law, rule, regulation or policy, along ideological lines and let the courts figure it out. Meanwhile We the People become more and more divided.

Then it gets challenged in court, where a savvy lawyer goes judge shopping to file his case with hopes some nut case judge gives him the decision he wants.

Like I ask all the time, "What could possibly go wrong?"

Is the only way to accomplish keeping biological males from competing in female sports through legislation?

If the desire is to separate public and private schools or to bring all public schools under an agency controlled by the state government, (which the legislature could), then at least be transparent about it. As stated, the FHSAA is a volunteer organization created by the schools and is over a century old. The state constitution allows for home rule and lets local governments, cities, counties, and school districts, to enter into agreements with other public or private parties. That really is all the FHSAA is in reality. For the legislature to take over a private organization like the FHSAA, I see such as unconstitutional and also against conservative principles.

Here is something that occurred to me as I thought about the bill to make FHSAA an appointed board by the governor. The FHSAA is a voluntary organization made up of both public and private schools. The FHSAA goes back to 1920 and pre-dates the current state constitution. The FHSAA was not created by the state legislature through statute. In fact, it wasn't until the 1980s that the state legislature recognized the FHSAA as the governing body for interschoolatic sports and the language of such doesn't state that public schools have to join; it is more or less implied. While the state legislature can mandate policy for public schools, they cannot do so for private schools. I would argue that given the history of the FHSAA the state legislature has no authority to dissolve or to interfere with how the FHSAA is set up. The only authority that the legislature has would be to form a new entity for public schools only.

You do observe that the SSAC and other independent conferences are composed of small schools, the majority of which are private schools. I only know of a few public schools that have been allowed in the SSAC. Yet more and more are going the independent route or switching associations. Why is this? There has been a feeling of not being represented or heard by the small public schools for a while now. Your question would be better answered by taking to some of them than me. It's clear to me however that these schools are leaving for a reason. On a side note, SSAC members, most of them anyway, still remain FHSAA members too. Exactly how that works I don't know.

I heard that there is a bill in the state legislature that if passed would make FHSAA a 9 member board appointed by the governor.

Failure by the FHSAA to really address the issues of smaller schools is why the SSAC is growing. Sorta like NAIA is becoming a better option for smaller colleges than NCAA.