Lawmaker to Introduce Bill to Require Teams to Test Professional Athletes for Steroid Use
Sen. Don Perata (D-Oakland) plans to introduce a bill today that would require professional athletic associations with teams that compete in California to develop plans to test players for steroid use, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Although the National Football League and the National Basketball Association have plans in place, Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League do not test players for steroids. Perata said that recent allegations made by players about the use of steroids in MLB prompted him to draft the bill, which would require teams to file plans to test players for steroids with the California Athletic Commission to compete in the state. According to Perata, the Legislature has the authority to "pursue the health and safety of the residents of the state." However, Sen. Rico Oller (R-San Andreas) called Perata's legislation "clearly bad public policy," adding, "This is a tremendous overreach. These [players] are not even California citizens" (Gledhill/Kroichick, San Francisco Chronicle, 6/13).
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