Senate landslide vote passes bill to reshape college sports

A bill aimed at reshaping the college sports industry passed the Senate Monday with a bipartisan vote of 77-22. The bill will protect student athletes by ensuring they can’t be taken advantage of through backdoor deals, said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, one of the bill’s authors. If the bill becomes law, it would codify the rights of student athletes to earn money from their name, image, and likeness, he said. The bill’s supporters include a long list of athletic conferences and schools, the National Collegiate Athletic Association itself, and President Donald Trump.

The bill will next move to the House of Representatives, which is not scheduled to vote on any legislation until after the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Cruz and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., first introduced the bill to the Senate in May.

What exactly would the bill do?

• It would give the NCAA a limited antitrust exemption to help the association cap how much college teams pay their athletes.

• Additionally, it would systemize the regulation of name, image, and likeness deals that have allowed some collegiate athletes millions per season.

• Regarding transfers, the bill would restrict athletes to one transfer without penalty during their college career.

• It would also bolster new NCAA rules that allow athletes to compete in college only in a five-year window.

• The bill would disincentivize conference realignment to prevent economically powerful conferences from forming. Any school jumping from one conference to another would have to first compete independently for three academic years.

Who opposes the bill? Several senators, athletic unions, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People argued the bill would strip away athletes’ rights. They contended the bill wouldn’t do enough to rein in colleges’ athletic programs.

Dig deeper: Listen to Harrison Watters’ report for The World and Everything in It for more details on the act.