Congress considers Protect College Sports Act to regulate NIL and transfers

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Members of Congress are considering federal legislation to establish regulations for college student-athlete compensation and transfer rules. The proposed measure, known as the Protect College Sports Act, comes amid growing debate over how money and transfers are handled across college athletics.

Since 2021, college athletes have been permitted to earn compensation through their name, image and likeness, commonly known as NIL. Without federal oversight, the system has developed into an unregulated landscape where large sums of money are spent to compensate players and build team rosters.

Former college athletics coach Nick Saban testified before Congress regarding the state of college athletics and the impact of unmanaged financial compensation. “I think the current system that we have in college athletics right now makes it more and more difficult to do these things,” Saban said. “We've moved away from development to focusing on money and not life skills.”

Under the proposed Protect College Sports Act, student-athletes would be allowed one transfer without forfeiting their athletic eligibility. The bill would also grant schools and conferences a limited antitrust exemption to pool and sell media rights, structured similarly to major professional sports leagues.

The antitrust provision has met opposition from lawmakers, including Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, who voted against the bill. “This bill takes that opportunity way by granting an antitrust exemption that continues into the future forever and ever,” Merkley said. “Basically, you're locking in or locking the athletes out of the ability to to negotiate on issues that matter to them.”

With elections approaching, lawmakers face pressure to pass the measure before congressional turnover. The House of Representatives went into recess for October, shifting responsibility to the Senate to act on the legislation.

The current session of Congress is set to expire on Jan. Three. If the Senate does not pass the legislation before that date, the legislative process for the bill will have to start over in the next session of Congress.