A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators — Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Jerry Moran (R-KS), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) — announced a draft of a bill that would standardize NIL-related regulations on a federal level, trumping the hodge-podge of state laws currently in place.
The College Athletes Protection & Compensation Act is currently in its first draft, which Moran believes will make it through a Senate vote, according to The Athletic.
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One of the biggest features of the bill is the proposed formation of the College Athletics Corporation (CAC), which would be “a central oversight entity that would set, administer, and enforce rules and standards to protect athletes who enter into endorsement contracts.”
The bill also addresses a host of additional areas that are some of the biggest hot-button issues in college sports and NIL today. Some of the major points the bill will address include:
- Student-athletes can use agents who will have to be registered with the CAC.
- Athletes making over $1,000 per year, including incoming recruits, would have to disclose their endorsement deals to a designated person at the school.
- If an athlete stops playing college sports they can get out of an NIL deal without being liable for breach of contract
- Athletes can transfer once and play immediately but not during or within 60 days of the start of the season.
- If an athlete declares for the draft they can come back if they’re undrafted as long as they don’t take money from a team, league, or agent.
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This bill also deals with a host of medical and medical expense-related issues to help keep college athletes safer, healthier, and covered for long-term healthcare.
Maybe most importantly, the bill would not just circumvent current state and local laws. It would prohibit states to make individual laws that would conflict with the bill or stop student-athletes from transferring.
