Youth Sports Facilities Act of 2024
- Bill Number
- S. 1419
- Origin Chamber
- Senate
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Sports and Recreation
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-04-10: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- Last Updated
- 2025-12-05T22:04:43Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The Youth Sports Facilities Act of 2024 aims to expand federal economic development grants to include youth sports facilities, promoting physical activity, community health, and economic growth, particularly in underserved and rural areas.
Key Provisions
- Eligibility Expansion: Amends Section 201 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to explicitly include "youth sports" as an eligible category for public works grants and adds "youth sports facilities" as a type of infrastructure that can receive funding.
- New Grant Purposes: Introduces five additional criteria under which grants can be awarded for youth sports facilities:
- Addressing mental and physical health issues from sedentary lifestyles and obesity by improving access to recreational spaces.
- Supporting highly rural communities lacking tax revenue for active lifestyle infrastructure.
- Primarily serving low-income children in rural or underserved areas who lack access to physical education or sports facilities and live in communities with high rates of opioid use disorders or violence.
- Promoting youth sports and recreation to drive economic development in urban and rural areas without adequate facilities.
- Encouraging job creation through youth sports facilities and related businesses.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Broadens the scope of eligible projects under the 1965 Act by inserting youth sports into general grant categories and facility definitions.
- Adds specific, targeted purposes (paragraphs 9–13) to the list of allowable uses for grants, shifting focus toward health, equity, and economic benefits in vulnerable communities, which were not previously emphasized for sports-related infrastructure.
Potential Impacts
- On Citizens: Increases access to safe recreational spaces for youth, potentially reducing obesity, improving mental health, and providing positive outlets in high-risk areas; benefits low-income and rural families most directly.
- On Government Agencies: The Economic Development Administration (EDA) within the Department of Commerce may see an uptick in grant applications and funding allocations for community projects, requiring updated review processes to prioritize the new criteria.
- On International Relations: No direct impact, as the bill focuses on domestic economic and community development.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Youth and Families: Especially low-income children in rural, urban underserved, or high-opioid/violence areas who gain better access to sports and recreation.
- Local Governments and Communities: Rural and urban areas without sufficient facilities, enabling them to apply for federal grants to build or improve infrastructure.
- Economic Development Entities: Nonprofits, businesses, and local economic agencies that can leverage grants for job-creating projects tied to youth sports.
- Federal Agencies: Primarily the EDA, which administers the grants under the amended Act.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens the framework for using federal funds to address public health disparities without altering core grant eligibility rules; no challenges to existing statutes anticipated.
- Constitutional: Aligns with Congress's spending power under Article I, Section 8, to promote general welfare through infrastructure and health initiatives; no apparent free speech, equal protection, or federalism issues.
- Political: Supports bipartisan priorities like youth wellness, rural investment, and opioid crisis mitigation (introduced by Senators Ossoff and Young); could influence future appropriations by highlighting economic benefits of recreational infrastructure in underserved regions.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2025-04-10: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- 2025-04-10: Introduced in Senate
Bill Versions
- Youth Sports Facilities Act of 2024 — issued 2025-04-10 — PDF (3 pages)