Senate Committee Advances Protect College Sports Act on 19-9 Vote

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation voted 19-9 on June 18 to advance the Protect College Sports Act to the Senate floor. The bill grants an antitrust exemption that would allow enforcement of a cap on payments to college athletes and authorizes an amendment to the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 permitting voluntary pooling and joint negotiation of media rights by schools.

Sens.

) sponsored the legislation. " Cruz stated, "No one got everything they wanted. " The SEC and Big Ten released a joint statement the same morning opposing the bill in its current form. The conferences said they had proposed revisions focused on supporting student-athletes and stabilizing the college sports environment, but those changes were not accepted.

An anti-expansion provision in the revised bill bars conferences generating at least $700 million in annual revenue from forming a new league together. The measure also separates Olympic and women’s sports from the media-rights pooling provision and sets minimum scholarship and roster-size limits independent of pooled media revenue.

The bill contains explicit protections for women’s athletes in Olympic sports, shields athletes from predator contracts, and holds agents accountable under federal law.

Pooled media-rights revenue is designated to fund less-profitable sports. Sens. Maria Cantwell, Marsha Blackburn, and Amy Klobuchar spoke on June 18 about local broadcasting and paywalls limiting fan access.

The legislation would increase streaming rights for sports with less broadcasting. The NFL, NFL Players Association, United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, ACC, and Big 12 have endorsed the bill. The legislation limits player compensation and the ability to transfer.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune must schedule a floor vote. Fifty days remain until Congress recesses for the summer.