The Boy Scouts of America may soon give sponsors of troops the authority to decide whether to accept gays, in a potentially dramatic retreat from an exclusionary nationwide policy that has provoked relentless protests.
Under the change now being discussed, the different religious and civic groups that sponsor Scout units would be able to decide for themselves how to address the issue - either maintaining an exclusion of gays, as is now required of all units, or opening up their membership.
Gay rights activists were delighted at the prospect of change, sensing another milestone to go along with recent advances for same-sex marriage and the end of the ban on gays serving openly in the military.
But Southern Baptist leaders - who consider homosexuality a sin - were furious and said approval might encourage churches to support other boys' organisations instead of the BSA.
Yesterday's announcement of the possible change comes after years of protests over the no-gays policy - including petition campaigns that have prompted some corporations to suspend donations to the Boy Scouts.
Under the proposed change, said BSA spokesman Deron Smith, "the Boy Scouts would not, under any circumstances, dictate a position to units, members, or parents".
He said the change could be announced as early as next week, after BSA's national board concludes a regularly-scheduled meeting on February 6. The meeting will be closed to the public.
The BSA, which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2010, has long excluded both gays and atheists. Mr Smith said a change in the policy towards atheists was not being considered and that the BSA continued to view "duty to God" as one of its basic principles.
Protests over the no-gays policy gained momentum in 2000, when the US Supreme Court upheld the BSA's right to exclude gays. Scout units lost sponsorships by public schools and other entities that adhered to non-discrimination policies, and several local Scout councils made public their displeasure with the policy.
More recently, amid petition campaigns, shipping giant UPS and drug-manufacturer Merck said they were halting donations from their charitable foundations to the Boy Scouts as long as the no-gays policy was in force.
Scouting chiefs also drew widespread criticism in recent months for ousting Jennifer Tyrrell, a lesbian mother, as a den leader of her son's Cub Scout pack and for refusing to approve an Eagle Scout application by Ryan Andresen, a teenager who came out as gay last year.
Ms Tyrrell said she was thrilled for parents and their children who had been excluded from scouting and "for those who are in Scouts and hiding who they are".
Many of the protest campaigns, including one seeking Ms Tyrrell's reinstatement, had been waged with help from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.
"The Boy Scouts of America have heard from Scouts, corporations and millions of Americans that discriminating against gay Scouts and scout leaders is wrong," said Herndon Graddick, GLAAD's president.
"Scouting is a valuable institution and this change will only strengthen its core principles of fairness and respect."