The Senate voted 77-22 to pass legislation that would create national standards for athlete pay, limit transfers and grant antitrust protections to the NCAA. The bill now goes to the House, which is in recess until after the November midterms.
The Protect College Sports Act passed the Senate 77-22 and establishes national rules for name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation, limits transfers and sets a five-year eligibility standard.
The bill grants the NCAA federal antitrust protection, lets conferences negotiate TV deals as a group while capping conference size at 19 members, and includes a one-time transfer limit.
Next step: the bill moves to the House, which is on recess until after the midterm elections, leaving its prospects unclear.
# What passed
Act on a 77-22 bipartisan vote. The measure would create a federal framework for how college athletes can be paid for their name, image and likeness (NIL). It also changes transfer rules, eligibility timelines and gives the NCAA certain antitrust protections.
# What the bill would do
# Who supports it and why
Supporters include the bill's lead Senate sponsor, Sen. Ted Cruz, who framed the current system as chaotic and said Congress must act to impose ''simple, common sense rules'' so college sports remain ''strong and vibrant.'' The NCAA and major conferences have endorsed the bill. President Donald Trump publicly urged Congress to send the measure to his desk and called the Senate passage ''a really big deal.''
# Who opposes it and why
Labor groups and athlete advocates oppose the bill. The National College Players Association, the NAACP and the AFL-CIO argue the package protects universities and the NCAA at the expense of student athletes' rights.
Sen. Chris Murphy said the bill ''protects a system of exploitation'' by suppressing compensation that benefits coaches and executives. Sen. Cory Booker called the bill aligned with wealthy institutional interests. The players association warned a provision could limit athletes' ability to sue schools in cases like sexual abuse or catastrophic injury by allowing institutions time to ''cure'' violations.
Sen. Cruz disputed the criticism, saying the bill protects student athletes by ensuring access to revenue sharing and genuine NIL compensation while also protecting the broader athletic opportunities for the majority of athletes who do not turn professional.
# What happens next
The bill now goes to the House of Representatives. The House is in recess until after the November midterm elections, so whether it will take up this measure is uncertain. Passage in the House would be required for the bill to reach the president's desk.
# Practical implications if enacted
# Short takeaway
The Senate vote advances a major federal attempt to standardize how college sports operate in the post-NIL era, but the measure has drawn sharp division over whether it balances institutional stability with protecting athletes' rights. The House's post-midterm calendar will decide the bill's immediate fate.
“A sweeping bill that aims to remake college sports and impose order on a system transformed by athlete payments, frequent transfers and years of litigation cleared a major hurdle Monday night, passing the Senate with bipartisan support,” the Washington Post reports. “The Senate approved the Protect College Sports Act
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan measure to overhaul the college sports landscape got a step closer to becoming law Monday after passing the U.S. Senate. The bill — which sailed through on a 77-22 vote — would set a national framework for college athletes’ compensation, provide certain antitrust protections to the NCAA, estab
The Senate passed a sweeping bipartisan bill on Monday that would regulate college sports, an attempt to end “chaos” in an industry that has been upended by skyrocketing athlete payments and near-unrestricted transfers between schools. The overwhelming 77-22 vote to pass the legislation is the strongest effort yet by C
WASHINGTON (KYMA) — A major overhaul of college athletics is moving forward on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act on Monday in a 77-22 vote, advancing legislation that would establish national rules for name, image and likeness compensation and other issues surrounding colleg
The bill, among its top priorities, hands the NCAA sweeping federal antitrust protection shielding it from lawsuits around the enforcement of its rules and caps the amount of money student athletes can be paid for their name, image and likeness.
The bill, among its top priorities, hands the NCAA sweeping federal antitrust protection shielding it from lawsuits around the enforcement of its rules and caps the amount of money student athletes can be paid for their name, image and likeness.
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