SACRAMENTO — Today, Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham (R-San Luis Obispo) and a group of 12 other Assembly Republicans called on California Department of Public Health Director Dr. Tómas Aragón to change the department’s guidance limiting spectators at outdoor youth sports events to one spectator per player. The guidance, issued quietly last week, is different than the guidance given to pro and college sporting events.
“For the past several months, young athletes and their parents have been working extremely hard to get back onto the field, the court, and into the pool,” the letter states. “While kids across the state are now able to safely play the sports they love, no more than one adult per participant may attend a youth sports game under new CDPH guidelines.
“To be frank, these guidelines are outrageous. There is no scientific or medical justification for them.”
While the CDPH’s guidelines prohibit families watching their children play sports from the stands, entire families are still allowed to dine indoors or go to a movie theater.
“Given that there is no science to show that eating indoors or going to a movie is more dangerous than watching a youth sports game, we implore you to immediately change these guidelines. If entire families can go see a movie or watch a professional sports team play, there is no reason a family cannot safely watch one of their kids play or perform,” the letter concludes.
Last week, CDPH quietly announced via an FAQ that no more than one immediate family member per participant could attend outdoor youth sporting events. CDPH also banned recruiters and scouts. These guidelines do not change based on the county’s tier.
Outdoor professional stadiums, starting Apr. 1, are allowed to admit up to 20% of their stadium’s capacity for professional sporting events if their county is in the red tier. Professional stadiums in the orange tier are allowed to admit up to 33% capacity.
The letter, which can be downloaded here, is signed by Assemblymember Jordan Cunningham, Assemblymember Megan Dahle, Assemblymember Frank Bigelow, Assemblymember Vince Fong, Assemblymember Kevin Kiley, Assemblymember Tom Lackey, Assemblymember Heath Flora, Assemblymember Kelly Seyarto, Assemblymember Devon Mathis, Assemblymember Janet Nguyen, Assemblymember Randy Voepel, Assemblymember Laurie Davies, and Assemblymember Thurston “Smitty” Smith.
