Press Releases

WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03), a former Division I volleyball player, was joined by Congresswomen Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) and Alma Adams (NC-12) in leading a request from members of the Democratic Women’s Caucus (DWC) to U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona asking for clarity on how Title IX applies to collegiate athlete pay.

Specifically, the Members are inquiring as to how Title IX is being considered in the preliminarily approved settlement agreement in House v. NCAA, Hubbard v. NCAA, and Carter v. NCAA, which would for the first time require the back-payment of damages to former athletes from lost revenue and set a clear path for schools to begin sharing their revenue with athletes through cash payments.

Currently, the distribution of funds in the settlement is lopsided, and there is concern that the back-payment thresholds could be misinterpreted as being compliant with Title IX. The members wrote:

“We are deeply concerned that, if approved, the back-payment thresholds established in the settlement could be misinterpreted as compliant with Title IX or used as a justification to not apply Title IX to athlete compensation going forward,” the Members wrote. “Clearly, the originally proposed breakdown that would result in less than 10% of damages going to women athletes is not equal to the rate paid to athletes of the opposite sex, and it makes gender-based distinctions in rates of pay which is in violation of the Title IX Regulations.”

The settlement also comes at a time when women’s sports are more popular than ever. The members continued:

“At a time when women’s sports are exploding in popularity, collegiate athletics should not take a step back by implementing a model that ignores the progress of women’s sports and eliminates the opportunity for women athletes to be compensated equally as required under Title IX,” the Members continued. “Quite simply, the acknowledgement that college athletes are deserving of compensation does not invalidate Title IX or allow it to take a backseat. In fact, it should be a lynchpin of the conversation.”

Trahan has been a leader on college sports issues in Congress. Earlier this year, she worked with Innovation, Data, and Commerce Subcommittee Ranking Member Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) to invite University of California, Los Angeles Quarterback Chase Griffin to testify before Congress in opposition to legislation that would curtail athletes’ rights. The next month, she reintroduced the Fair Play for Women Act to close Title IX loopholes that deprive women and girls of athletic opportunities in college and K-12 sports. Last year, she partnered with Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) to reintroduce the College Athlete Economic Freedom Act, legislation they first introduced prior to the Supreme Court’s Alston v. NCAA decision to establish an unrestricted federal right for college athletes to market their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).

Read the full letter HERE.

Full List of Signatures: Representatives Lori Trahan (MA-03), Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11), Alma S. Adams (NC-12), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Lois Frankel (FL-22), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Lauren Underwood (IL-14), Kathy E. Manning (NC-06), Sylvia R. Garcia (TX-29), Deborah K. Ross (NC-02), Jennifer L. McClellan (VA-04), LaMonica McIver (NJ-10), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Angie Craig (MN-02), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Ann McLane Kuster (NH-02), Marilyn Strickland (WA-10), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), Doris Matsui (CA-07), Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), and Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-07).

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