"There were prior versions of this bill Governor Huntsman would have vetoed, however this legislation simply codifies language that is already in state board rules," said Mike Mower, the governor's spokesman.

The fight over gay-straight alliances began in 1996 when the Salt Lake City School District banned all noncurricular clubs rather than allow the club to form at East High.

The ban was lifted four years later after a series of court battles, but the sting for conservative Republicans never left.

Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, last year unsuccessfully tried to push through a bill that would kill such clubs. This year, after seven major revisions, lawmakers passed the bill over the objections of Democrats and three Republicans who felt it stepped on the authority of local school boards, created cumbersome restrictions to create clubs or would result in lawsuits.

The bill does not specifically mention gay straight alliances, or any other club. But it does set up criteria that governs the creation of a club and rules administrators can use to block such groups.

Buttars believes the bill would allow administrators to reject applications to create gay straight alliances and force the state to cover the legal costs.