Sanctioning of MMA in New York will see its first round of voting by the State Assembly near the end of January 2010. The bill to sanction MMA in the state, which ran out of time to be passed last year, will restart its journey through the legislative process with the Parks, Tourism, and Sport’s Development Committee, which is chaired by Assemblyman Steve Englebright.
According to Assemblyman Englebright’s legislative director, Elizabeth Nostrand, while the MMA bill is high on the agenda, individual committee meetings will not begin until the end of January.
Though this may seem like another undue delay to anxious MMA fans, the bill’s overall health is still very strong. Even with the primary opponent of MMA in New York, Assemblyman Bob Reilly, being a member of the Parks, Tourism, and Sport’s Development Committee, the bill passed through the committee with flying colors last year.
Nostrand, while being unable to speak for all the committee members in any official capacity, explained that it’s unlikely that any MMA supporters have turned tail.
“There seemed to be an obvious change in perception [of the bill] once all the information was clarified,” Nostrand said of the bill’s initial troubles in committee. “I haven’t heard of anything that might have altered [committee members’ stances].”
Nostrand added that Assemblyman Englebright continues his stance for the bill, giving the reasoning that sanctioning would provide a “new level of protection for competitors.”
The bill currently set to be voted on only applies to the sanctioning of professional mixed martial arts in the state of New York. Rules and regulations involving the institution of amateur leagues are expected to follow, but have not yet entered into serious discussion.
Should the bill pass in Parks, Tourism, and Sport’s Development, it must then go through the Codes Committee, followed by Ways and Means for approval before it will be voted on by the General Assembly.
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