Washington currently has no guidelines to ensure youth sports (non-school sports) are safe and high quality.

HERE ARE OUR POLICY SOLUTIONS being left on the sidelines.

ADD CRITICAL STATE OVERSIGHT:

• Convene a task force to study the youth sports industry in Washington state and make recommendations to the legislature.

MAKE YOUTH SPORTS SAFER:

• Establish monitoring, accountability, and oversight of safety issues.

• Require state-level tracking of coach abuse and misconduct by state-level governing bodies.

• Ensure all youth sports organizations follow safety and coach training standards.

ENSURE ALL COACHES RECEIVE HIGH-QUALITY TRAINING:

• Professionalize and train youth sports coaches with a focus on youth development, mental health, and social emotional well-being.

• Require background checks for youth sports coaches.

MAKE YOUTH SPORTS AVAILABLE TO MORE KIDS:

• Ensure all youth regardless of geographic area, income, ability, race, or gender (and/or sex) have access to sports in their community.

• Fund youth sports fields and indoor facilities across Washington state.

• Provide grant funding to organizations that offer community-based sports to expand access.

Washington state is not alone. Other states are addressing these issues by passing bills that create youth sports commissions or task forces, including Massachusetts (became law in 2024), Illinois (became law in 2025) and California (became law in 2025, received $4 million in funding in 2026).