NCAA Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2036 To provide protections for amateur and professional athletes, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 2, 2019 Mr. LAWSON of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To provide protections for amateur and professional athletes, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘National Collegiate Athletics Act of 2019’’ or the 5 ‘‘NCAA Act of 2019’’. 6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 7 this Act is as follows: 8 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. TITLE I—ATHLETES ENROLLED IN INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 2036 IH Sec. 10. Enforcement. Sec. 11. Amateurism. Sec. 12. Scholarships. Sec. 13. Returning athlete scholarships. Sec. 14. Student-athlete work opportunity. Sec. 15. Student-athlete injury coverage. TITLE II—COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS Sec. 21. Collective bargaining agreements in professional sports. TITLE III—GENERAL PROVISIONS Sec. 31. Annual report. Sec. 32. Definitions. TITLE I—ATHLETES ENROLLED 1 IN INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 2 EDUCATION 3 SEC. 10. ENFORCEMENT. 4 Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 5 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 6 following: 7 ‘‘(30) The institution will comply with the re- 8 quirements of title I of the NCAA Act of 2019.’’. 9 SEC. 11. AMATEURISM. 10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 11 (b), an institution of higher education may not restrict, 12 or be a member of an intercollegiate athletic association 13 that restricts amateur athletes from participating in ama- 14 teur sports. 15 (b) RESTRICTIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply 16 to restrictions with respect to— 17 (1) performance enhancement drugs; 18 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 2036 IH (2) controlled substances which are illegal 1 under the State laws in which the institution is lo- 2 cated; 3 (3) educational requirements; or 4 (4) student code violations. 5 SEC. 12. SCHOLARSHIPS. 6 (a) FRESHMEN SCHOLARSHIP REQUIREMENTS.— 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a student de- 8 scribed in paragraph (2), an institution of higher 9 education may only provide a scholarship for at least 10 2 concurrent academic years. 11 (2) STUDENT DESCRIBED.—A student de- 12 scribed under this paragraph is a student who— 13 (A) participates as an athlete in a colle- 14 giate revenue-generating sport; 15 (B) is an incoming freshman at such insti- 16 tution; and 17 (C) does not transfer to such institution 18 from another institution of higher education. 19 (b) OTHER STUDENT ATHLETES.— 20 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a student de- 21 scribed in paragraph (2), an institution of higher 22 education may only provide a scholarship for at least 23 1 academic year. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 2036 IH (2) STUDENT DESCRIBED.—A student de- 1 scribed in this paragraph is a student who— 2 (A) participates as an athlete in a colle- 3 giate revenue-generating sport; and 4 (B) is not a recipient of a scholarship 5 under subsection (a). 6 (c) AMOUNT OF SCHOLARSHIP.—The amount of a 7 scholarship under subsection (a) or (b) shall be equal to 8 the cost of attendance for the institution awarding such 9 scholarship, as determined under section 472 of the High- 10 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087ll). 11 (d) REVOCATION.—An institution of higher education 12 may only revoke a scholarship under subsections (a) and 13 (b) if the recipient of such scholarship— 14 (1) elects to withdraw from participating in the 15 collegiate revenue-generating sport; 16 (2) fails to complete mandatory time with re- 17 spect to such sport; 18 (3) is not an amateur athlete; 19 (4) violates the student code of conduct of the 20 institution of higher education; or 21 (5) has a GPA or academic performance below 22 the standard for student athletes of the institution 23 of higher education. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 2036 IH SEC. 13. RETURNING ATHLETE SCHOLARSHIPS. 1 (a) ASSOCIATES DEGREE.—In the case of a student 2 that received a scholarship from an institution of higher 3 education under subsection (a) or (b) of section 12 and 4 attended such institution for a period of less than 2 aca- 5 demic years, such institution of higher education shall pro- 6 vide a needs-based scholarship to such student to complete 7 the minimum coursework necessary to obtain an associate 8 degree or equivalent, unless the athletes scholarship had 9 been previously revoked under section 12(d). 10 (b) BACHELORS DEGREE.—In the case of a student 11 that received a scholarship from an institution of higher 12 education under subsection (a) or (b) of section 12 and 13 attended such institution for a period of 2 or more aca- 14 demic years, such institution of higher education shall pro- 15 vide a needs-based scholarship to such student to complete 16 the minimum coursework necessary to obtain a bachelors 17 degree. 18 (c) FULL-TIME STUDENTS.—An institution of higher 19 education may require a returning student described in 20 subsection (a) or (b) to attend such institution full-time. 21 (d) NEEDS-BASED SCHOLARSHIP.—In this section, 22 the term ‘‘needs-based scholarship’’ means the amount 23 equal to— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 2036 IH (1) the cost of attendance for a student (as de- 1 fined in section 472 of the Higher Education Act of 2 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087ll)); minus 3 (2) the lesser of the following: 4 (A) The expected family contribution for 5 such student if such contribution was deter- 6 mined under section 475 of the Higher Edu- 7 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087oo). 8 (B) The expected family contribution for 9 such student if such contribution was deter- 10 mined under section 476 of the Higher Edu- 11 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087pp). 12 (C) The expected family contribution for 13 such student if such contribution was deter- 14 mined under section 477 of the Higher Edu- 15 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087qq). 16 SEC. 14. STUDENT-ATHLETE WORK OPPORTUNITY. 17 (a) IN GENERAL.—An institution of higher education 18 that provides a scholarship under subsection (a) or (b) of 19 section 12 to a student shall require that such student 20 report to such institution any potential paid work oppor- 21 tunity such student intends to accept, before accepting 22 such work opportunity. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 2036 IH (b) REVIEW OF WORK OPPORTUNITY.—In the case 1 of a work opportunity reported pursuant to subsection (a), 2 an institution shall— 3 (1) approve or deny such opportunity in writing 4 not later than 14 days after receiving such report; 5 or 6 (2) deny such opportunity only if accepting 7 such opportunity— 8 (A) would nullify the amateur status of 9 such student; or 10 (B) would prohibit the student from ful- 11 filling mandatory time commitments for the 12 sport for which the student received a scholar- 13 ship under subsection (a) or (b) of section 12. 14 (c) EFFECT OF DENIAL.—In the case of a denial of 15 an opportunity reported to an institution of higher edu- 16 cation pursuant to subsection (a), if a student accepts 17 such opportunity, the institution may revoke the scholar- 18 ship under subsection (a) or (b) of section 12 of such stu- 19 dent. 20 SEC. 15. STUDENT-ATHLETE INJURY COVERAGE. 21 (a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a student at an in- 22 stitution of higher education who participates as an ath- 23 lete in a collegiate revenue-generating sport, such institu- 24 tion shall ensure that such student is provided, at no cost 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 2036 IH to such student, coverage for any medical costs incurred 1 by such student with respect to any injury attributable 2 to participation in such sport. Such institution shall serve 3 as the primary payor with respect to 100 percent of such 4 costs in lieu of any benefits such student may have under 5 health insurance coverage or a group health plan (as such 6 terms are defined in section 2791 of the Public Health 7 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–91)). 8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirement specified in 9 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to students partici- 10 pating in a collegiate revenue-generating sport on or after 11 the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment 12 of this Act. 13 TITLE II—COLLECTIVE 14 BARGAINING AGREEMENTS 15 SEC. 21. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS IN PRO- 16 FESSIONAL SPORTS. 17 A collective bargaining agreement between a profes- 18 sional sports league and a professional players’ association 19 entered into after the date of the enactment of this Act 20 shall allow adults to enter the collective bargaining agree- 21 ment at the same level as other adults with the same expe- 22 rience level in such professional sports league. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 2036 IH TITLE III—GENERAL 1 PROVISIONS 2 SEC. 31. ANNUAL REPORT. 3 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 4 of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Edu- 5 cation shall provide each institution of higher education 6 with a collegiate revenue-generating sport a report of the 7 responsibilities of such institutions with respect to players 8 participating in the collegiate revenue-generating sport. 9 SEC. 32. DEFINITIONS. 10 In this Act: 11 (1) ADULT.—The term ‘‘adult’’ means a person 12 that is at least 18 years old. 13 (2) AMATEUR ATHLETE.—The term ‘‘amateur 14 athlete’’ means an athlete that participates in a 15 sport who has not— 16 (A) entered into a contract with a profes- 17 sional team with respect to such sport; 18 (B) received a salary with respect to such 19 sport; 20 (C) received earnings (not including schol- 21 arships) related to the participation in such 22 sport; or 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 2036 IH (D) received compensation from an agent 1 representing or attempting to represent such 2 athlete in such sport. 3 (3) COLLEGIATE REVENUE-GENERATING 4 SPORT.—The term ‘‘collegiate revenue-generating 5 sport’’ means men’s basketball or men’s football of- 6 fered by an institution of higher education for which 7 such institution participates in a qualified league. 8 (4) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 9 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ means an in- 10 stitution described in section 101 of the Higher 11 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 12 (5) QUALIFIED LEAGUE.—The term ‘‘qualified 13 league’’ means— 14 (A) division 1, football bowl subdivision, 15 autonomy schools; and 16 (B) any sports league comprised of at least 17 6 participating institutions of higher education 18 in which at least 66 percent or greater of the 19 revenues from a sport offered by such institu- 20 tions exceed the expenses in that sport in each 21 of the two most recently reported years. 22 (6) PROFESSIONAL SPORTS LEAGUE.—The 23 term ‘‘professional sports league’’ means— 24 (A) the National Hockey League; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 2036 IH (B) the National Football League; 1 (C) the National Basketball Association; 2 (D) Major League Baseball; and 3 (E) Major League Soccer. 4 (7) PROFESSIONAL PLAYERS ASSOCIATION.—A 5 group of professional sports league players that are 6 represented by a collective bargaining agreement 7 with a professional sports league. 8 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:39 Apr 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2036.IH H2036 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS