US Senate passes sweeping college sports bill, sending it to House with uncertain future

By: John T. Bennett

Appalachian State quarterback Malachi Singleton rolls out to pass during the Mountaineers' 41-31 loss to N.C. State on Saturday night in Raleigh, N.C. Singleton came to App State this season from Purdue University via the transfer portal. (Nicholas Faulkner/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The Senate on Monday approved sweeping bipartisan legislation to create the first federal framework governing college athletics, addressing an era of transfer chaos, skyrocketing costs, and the growth of name, image and likeness (NIL) deals.

The final vote was 77-22, a rare bipartisan outcome on a major piece of legislation during a time of political division. The chamber took a series of procedural votes in recent days, as well as an unexpected slate of amendments on Monday evening before final passage. The measure's fate in the House, however, remains unclear.

Bill Sponsorship and Background

Sponsored by Commerce Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas), with key cosponsors including:

• Ranking member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.)
• Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.)
• Chris Coons (D-Del.)

The bill's passage comes after months of negotiations that stretched beyond the committee room and into high-stakes talks with the leaders of the Southeastern and Big Ten conferences, as well as other influential college sports stakeholders.

Key Arguments in Favor

Sen. Chris Coons said in a floor speech last Wednesday:

"It doesn't take a diehard sports fan to see that college sports is currently broken. This year, 70 of the schools in the Power Four conferences will together generate over $7 billion in revenue from ads, from merchandise, from supporters — but they are all running at a deficit."

"To find the money to chase athletes, coaches and facilities, universities have begun cutting sports, and they've begun with women's sports and Olympic sports."

"This bill will bring stability to a collapsing college sports system. No more conference chaos. No more coaches transferring mid-season, and it will make for stronger teams where athletes know each other, and the coaches and the fans know who they're coaching and who they're cheering for."

Sen. Eric Schmitt acknowledged the measure is a bipartisan compromise and "not a perfect bill," but urged colleagues to send it to President Donald Trump's desk, calling it Congress' last, best chance to address these issues in the near term.

Opposition and Amendments

Criticism from Senators

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) criticized Senate leaders for blocking amendments, saying on the floor:

"Let's do something for the fans. I'm not happy about it."

His amendment to end rising ticket costs was defeated 42-54, the only one subject to a 60-vote threshold.

Sen. Richard J. Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said he had voted against procedural motions because "I feel it's defective in a number of areas":

"It fails to provide for adequate enforcement. [It] imposes the duty of enforcement on the athletes themselves, so they have to go out and hire lawyers."

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), a former Stanford University football player, said passing the bill would be "a shame":

"We're rushing to move on to it right now. It's not about the safety, it's not about the well-being, it's not about the education of college athletes. This is a money play, plain and simple."

Two of Booker's amendments were rejected Monday.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) argued the bill would give Congress too large a role in governing college sports, something most lawmakers were not qualified to do.

Adopted Amendments

The following amendments were adopted:

• Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.): Specified the bill would not preempt state laws related to certain injuries, including those resulting from deficient safety measures.
• Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.): Requires colleges and conferences to disclose to the relevant intercollegiate athletic association all amounts over $600 received from a foreign adversary, state-owned enterprise, or sovereign wealth fund.
• Sen. Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) and Sen. Richard J. Blumenthal (D-Conn.): Raises the bill's cap on conference size from 19 to 20 institutions.

Support Outside the Capitol

During a Sept. 14 rally in favor of the measure, Sen. Maria Cantwell said the bill was necessary because some institutions cannot "make ends meet" due to rising NIL costs:

"This is about reining in the bad practices that are happening in college sports today. The runaway costs that are sending people to the state legislature asking for bailouts from taxpayers to pay for sports, asking people to take endowment funds that really should go to things like wheat research or AI, and instead have to be spent because of the runaway arms race in sports spending."

House Prospects

The bill now moves to the House, where its path remains uncertain.

• The Congressional Black Caucus opposed a much different House version, citing silence from major athletic conferences and institutions on Black voting rights and political power. The CBC also opposes the Senate version, arguing it does not do enough to protect Black athletes.
• House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) has been pushing for his chamber's version and arguing the Senate will need to agree to changes. He and other House Republicans have been adamant about keeping a prohibition on granting employee status to college athletes.
• President Donald Trump said in late summer he wanted both chambers to approve the bill and send it to his desk. White House aides have said Trump, who last year created a White House college sports task force, would like to sign the bipartisan measure before the end of this calendar year.

Key Provisions of the Legislation

The bipartisan legislation would establish the nation's first federal regulatory structure for college athletics, creating national rules governing NIL deal-making and compensation. Major provisions include:

• Nationwide standards for NIL agreements
• Guidelines for schools making direct payments to athletes
• Targeted antitrust protections for certain college sports-governing organizations

Supporters said the measure is intended to replace the growing patchwork of state NIL laws that conferences and universities argue creates competitive imbalances and legal uncertainty.

Path to Passage

The Commerce Committee advanced an earlier version of the legislation on June 18, but the proposal immediately encountered resistance from leaders of the SEC and Big Ten conferences. Members of the so-called "Big Two" leagues had been hesitant to share revenue with conferences that rake in less each year.

The bill's authors reopened negotiations following the June markup, making a series of revisions to address the conferences' concerns. The breakthrough came late on July 31 after lawmakers agreed to several revisions that persuaded the SEC and Big Ten leaders to endorse the legislation.

Key Revisions

• Strengthened transparency requirements: Athletes must report NIL agreements both to their schools and to a national intercollegiate athletic association
• Companies with apparel and shoe contracts must certify separate NIL agreements with athletes
• Tightened language prohibiting NIL payments from being used to recruit prospective high school athletes before enrollment
• Created a retention pool exception allowing schools to exceed spending caps by up to $20 million
• Permits an additional $5 million for women's NIL opportunities, expiring after nine years

Looking Ahead

Sen. Ted Cruz said he wants Trump to sign the legislation during an appearance on ESPN's "College GameDay" Saturday morning pregame show. A White House official said there is no appearance on the show currently on Trump's schedule.

Jackie Wang and Savannah Behrmann contributed to this report.