ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Jillian Zakrzeski's skills with an air rifle earned her three New York state high school shooting championships, a berth in the Junior Olympics and even recruitment to a college rifle team.

"It's an amazing sport. It's not popular like soccer or tennis. But it changed my life," says Zakrzeski, a 19-year-old criminal justice major at the University of Mississippi. "I can't see my life without it."

But a proposal in New York's legislature would outlaw all high school shooting sports programs in the state — including air rifle teams and archery clubs — on the premise that they...