Following the final approval of a landmark settlement in three athlete-compensation antitrust cases against the NCAA and Power Five conferences, members of the U.S. House of Representatives are rapidly advancing new legislative proposals to establish national rules for college sports.
On Wednesday, June 10, Representatives Lisa McClain (R-MI) and Janelle Bynum (D-OR) introduced a bipartisan bill aimed at codifying many aspects of the recent settlement and creating a new rules-making structure for collegiate athletics.
This move closely follows a discussion draft circulated by Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Brett Guthrie (R-KY), which is set to be the focus of a House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee hearing on June 11. Bilirakis chairs the subcommittee, and Guthrie chairs the full committee.
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Both the McClain-Bynum bill and the Bilirakis-Guthrie discussion draft seek to prevent college athletes from being deemed employees of their schools, conferences, or athletic associations – a concept McClain previously championed in an April bill and which remains a point of contention in an ongoing federal lawsuit.
Key provisions in both proposals include:
- Rule-Making Authority: Granting the NCAA, and potentially a new “Collegiate Sports Commission,” the authority to establish and enforce operational rules, particularly in areas that have faced legal challenges, such as athlete recruitment, transfers, eligibility, academic standards, and codes of conduct.
- Legal Protections: Shielding the NCAA, the Commission, conferences, and schools from lawsuits stemming from rules “reasonably contemplated” under the new legislation. The discussion draft includes a placeholder for antitrust or other legal protections.
- Mandated Athlete Benefits: Requiring most Division I schools to provide a range of athlete benefits, including post-career medical coverage for athletically related injuries (four years in the bill, at least two in the discussion draft) and guaranteed financial aid to complete an undergraduate degree (10-year completion window in the bill, open-ended in the discussion draft).
- Medical Care and Mental Health: The discussion draft specifically mandates that most Division I schools establish an administrative structure for independent medical care, affirm the autonomous authority of primary athletics healthcare providers, cover out-of-pocket medical expenses for athletically related injuries, and provide mental health services.
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These legislative efforts follow previous attempts to establish federal college sports laws, which stalled in the Senate due to disagreements over athlete benefits.
However, with Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) now chairing the Senate Commerce Committee and expressing interest in passing a bill this year, the current momentum in the House could signal a renewed push for national oversight of college athletics.
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