Here are the links:
The Senate Version can be found here: http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/senate/186/st00pdf/st00998.pdf
The House version can be found here: http://www.mass.gov/legis/bills/house/186/ht04pdf/ht04290.pdf .
As I read those, it looks like they are not only looking to regulate MMA, they are also looking to regulate wrestling tournaments, grappling events, karate tournaments, as well as who can and can’t teach any of the above. Based on what I read, if you compete in a grappling event, you can only do 3 matches in one day, and if you get submitted 6 times in a year, you will be suspended. This doesn’t sound right to me, because even in small grappling divisions, people get more than 3 matches. Maybe I’m reading this wrong?
They also talk about regulating sparring sessions in which any money is generated, which they also say can be monthly dues…so unless I’m reading wrong, if students pay a monthly membership at a fight school and want to spar, the state has to regulate it…and it also sounds like all instructors need to be licensed. I talked to a few people about this, and that was the way it was explained to me. Maybe they read/heard wrong, but it looks like there is a lot more than regulating MMA involved with the bills.
Also, if you’re over 35, you may not be allowed to fight.
I’m not trying to stir the pot, and I’m not sure if I read any of this correctly. I’m not a lawyer, and have not talked to any lawyers about this. However, this bill could affect each and every one of us, so I wanted to make sure you all had the opportunity to read it and ask questions.
Please read the bills and post your reaction.
I Read it and the age thing is if you are 35 or over you will have to take a physical and be deemed ok by a doctor chosen by the Commisisoner, I don’t like that I’m 45 and can hang with the younger guys I get beat in training but not over welmed ,so I think 35 is to young of an age limit .1/4 of the UFC fighters are over 35
Does “Dr. chosen by the Commissioner” mean that some Dr. has just set himself up a nice side business? Gotta love MA!
I’m curious as to what the DR’s would be basing their decision. If all fighters have to to take a physical, as well as EKG and bloodwork no matter their age…what is the difference for fighters over 35? Do they just have to go to a commission doctor?
The way I’m reading it, I don’t think they are trying to include regulation of school or academy training activities. It says:
“…at which an admission fee is charged, either directly or indirectly, in the form of dues or otherwise…”
I *think* what they are trying to say is you can’t organize an event and sell tickets (admission fee) to see fights without the commission being involved.
When it says “in the form of dues or otherwise” I don’t believe they are trying to talk about people training at gyms/schools. Rather, they don’t want some sketchy promoter to say “oh there was no admission fee because they are all members of my MMA club, therefore I didn’t need to involve the commission.” When in reality the ‘MMA Club’ is just an indirect way for that sketchy promoter to charge people money to go see fights.
This is only my interpretation though. I would want to have this looked into to by other people to be sure.
Something else I found unusual is that they explicitly give permission to people 16 and 17 years old to be amateur BOXERS. With the commission’s approval, people 16-17 can do pro boxing, not just amateur.
Throughout the whole document they are very clear when they are talking about boxing vs MMA. They don’t say anything about allowing MMA for people 16-17. Why allow it for boxing not MMA?
ok. So what can we do to stop this? We all want to see regulations passed for MMA….but at what cost? I say we take a page out of Dana’s book and tell them we’re not just gonna take a deal for the sake of taking a deal. We will negociate on our terms. Why should we PAY MORE AND be restricted in ridiculous ways. Unbelievable. We need to get off our F-ing @sses and STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING
The Golden Gloves have had the cut off age of 35 since I was a kid, the MA Gov is probably not going to treat MMA any different.
The regulation is going to bring money to the state, the only real reason the bill has gone this far is because of money. There are not a hell of a lot of people in politics interested in allowing people to fight, but there are a lot of people into politics interested in making money.
Everything should have been expected, required licenses, hiring doctors, this is what the state does when it regulates, it creates an environment where the state will profit.
It’s going to be great to have the UFC in Boston, but I think we are going to see a lot of local organizations, especially in this economy be unable to make it through the high cost of running an event.
I’m happy to see it get passed, but there will be huge changes on the local scene.
It’s too bad no one was on here warning us all that state regulation of MMA(or anything) is a bad idea.Oh wait…
As great of a job as we’ve done self regulating for the last 5 years, we all knew that the future held only 2 possibilities, state sanctioning or a statewide ban. The state sees an untapped source of revenue and, just like 40-something other states, they have decided to tap it. Apparently some of these issues have arose in other states that have sanctioned MMA, it’s just they had to be settled after the fact. Here there is a chance to possibly correct it before it is voted on.
This is also a clear example of why we need a guy like Joe Esposito who is a true advocate of not only MMA, but of all of the “unarmed combat sports” (martial arts) in an official capacity. I say that because this could be just a bunch of “legalspeak” and everything will be left to the Commission as to what, and how they wish to enforce. If that is the case, a guy like Joe understands what the “spirit” of the law is and will help those who may come from a different background understand what makes sense and what does not.
I think that our best course of action is to get as many people to read these documents and post their concerns and or questions. I’ll talk to Joe as well as some contacts in the state house and we’ll see how best to proceed. If I hear anything, I’ll keep everyone posted.
I definitely agree with Kevin here. As far as negotiating on our terms, it’s not that simple. Money is the one and only driving force here and its politics as usual. A 34-1 vote moved it on and that’s got green written all over it! MMA is neither a political figure nor entity so we as participants, fighters, fans, promoters, coaches, officials, etc. are left with the traditional process of gathering support. Even Dana White has had a steady battle for regulation and he carries name, entity, and a huge financial platform from which to work. It’s crucial that a weighted response is felt and heard from those actually living and impacting votes here in the commonwealth. As a Police Union President, I have seen first-hand on many occasions how proposed legislation with a monetary motive can prove to be more damaging than helpful and ultimately cause more harm than good due to “eyes on the prize” ignorance. Questions need to be asked and your respective area political heads need to be contacted at all levels. The biggest question I have right now is WHO if any, is the designated guide or reference head to assist with the proposals with regard to MMA. Is there a committee? We need someone with clout, knowledge, and experience involved in the process at some level; an ambassador to the mixed martial artist forum; one who represents us in all capacities. This is not an easy task but with out it, we’re left with highly educated individuals making highly uneducated decisions. I support regulation 110% but sincerely hope that the decisions include and consider those of us truly bonded by the passion and understanding of fight sport as a whole!! Snowflakes cause avalanches my friends!! Lets get it together….
Fucking politics. Dont even get me started.
if they restrict due to age does that mean the UFC cant have randy, jorge, marcus, and all the other over 35yr olds compete in mass? Lots of UFC fighters 35 and older
More reasons why you should fight in NH.
For the GFL!
http://www.gflmma.com
Danbonnell@yahoo.com
No, it looks like the wording says that if you are over 35 you have to pass a physical from your Dr. or get a different approval from the state physician. “OR” being the key word.
So today it passed. Its just waiting a signuature from you know who. This is bullshit!
*signature
My local rep sent this to me, this basically outlines what will happen to local MMA since the bill has been passeed. It’s funny, when the UFC, and just about everyone else pushed for this, very little of the specifics were laid out for people to make a decision on whether to support the bill or not.
What’s crazy here, when you read it, you will see that a city council will get to vote and decide if the fights happen after the license is issued to host an MMA event.
Here it is:
Yesterday, October 28th, I joined my colleagues in the Massachusetts
House of Representatives in passing mixed martial arts (MMA) legislation
that creates mandatory statewide safety standards as well as age and
insurance requirements for MMA events. The bill renames the State Boxing
commission as the State Athletic Commission and empowers the new entity
to issue licenses for MMA events across the state. Upon issuing a
license, the State Athletic Commission is required to notify the
municipality in which the event is scheduled to take place. According to
the bill’s “opt-out” clause, the municipality has seven days to prohibit
the event by a majority vote of the city council or board of selectmen.
In addition to outlining a list of license and minimum skill
requirements for those involved in the sport, the bill also takes a
number of steps to regulate the sport as a way to create new revenue
streams through increased tourism dollars. Through ticket sales fees and
revenues from TV, the bill will expand economic opportunities for the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In order to lift ourselves out of the
current economic crisis, we must be creative in the ways we raise
revenues and S.998 aids the state in this goal.
and what does this mean? “minimum skill
requirements” no more amateur fights?