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Bill seeking to block college athletes from employee status advances to House of Representatives
San Francisco ,
June 13, 2024
Bill seeking to block college athletes from employee status advances to House of RepresentativesAfter years of extensive lobbying efforts by the NCAA and its stakeholders on Capitol Hill, a bill focused on the future of college athletics has finally advanced to the House of Representatives. The House Committee on Education and the Work Force voted Thursday to advance H.R. 8534 — dubbed the “Protecting Student Athlete’s Economic Freedom Act.” The Republican-sponsored bill seeks to exempt college athletes from employee status, which has long been a pillar of the NCAA’s mission and has become a frequent target of legal challenges in recent years. The NCAA’s push for legislation that prevents an employment model in college sports has intensified in the wake of the recently proposed settlement to the House v. NCAA lawsuit, which would settle multiple high-profile antitrust cases against the NCAA and its power conferences. Members of the House committee voted 23-16 to advance the bill along straight party lines, with Republicans in support and Democrats against. The bill now gets sent to the full, Republican-controlled House of Representatives; if it passes there, it would go to the Democrat-controlled Senate, and then to the President, meaning the bill still faces many hurdles before it becomes a law. Considering the narrow focus of the bill and its lack of bi-partisan support in committee, it would likely need to be attached to broader legislation — known as a “rider” — in order to pass the Senate. Rep. Lori Trahan, a Democratic congresswoman from Massachusetts and former Division I volleyball player, voiced her disagreements with the bill on Thursday. “Once again, Republicans in Congress have decided to plow forward with legislation to limit the rights of college athletes with little to no input from athletes themselves,” Trahan said in a statement. “It’s disappointing that GOP members of the Education and Workforce Committee are choosing to advance a bill targeting a hypothetical issue over the very real challenges currently facing athletes, including Title IX loopholes that hurt women and international athletes not having NIL rights. “If House Republicans decide to force a vote on this partisan legislation on the floor, I will vote no, and I will continue to encourage my Democratic colleagues to do the same.” The bill is being debated amid legal battles over college-athlete employment, including complaints filed to the National Labor Relations Board and the Johnson v. NCAA lawsuit in Pennsylvania. Paul McDonald, one of the lead plaintiff attorneys in the Johnson case, sent a letter to committee members earlier this week arguing the bill is unconstitutional. “Denying College Athletes the same employee status, rights, and hourly pay as fellow students in Work Study-style programs violates Equal Protection,” McDonald said in a follow-up statement on Thursday. “If enacted, HR 8534 would never survive judicial challenge. To wit, it is a waste of time. Dilatory tactics have consequences. The only thing accomplished by the NCAA in needlessly dragging out the recognition of College Athletes as hourly employees like their fellow students is to significantly increase the cost of resolution borne by its membership.” |