Key Takeaways
- •Senators and witnesses debated whether student-athletes should be classified as employees, with many warning that the current "wild west" of NIL and transfers is unsustainable for universities.
- •Mikayla Pivec (Co-Founder and Organizing Director, United College Athletes Association) advocated for collective bargaining, while Trayvean Scott (Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics, Grambling State University) warned employment costs would bankrupt HBCUs.
- •Sen. Cassidy (R-LA) questioned Abby Lynch on the risks of an employment model, and Lynch responded that such a shift threatens the survival of non-revenue and Olympic sports.
- •Republicans emphasized protecting the educational mission through eligibility guardrails, while Democrats argued the current system exploits athletes by suppressing wages in a multi-billion dollar industry.
- •Congress faces pressure to pass a national framework for NIL and labor rights to prevent a patchwork of state laws from further destabilizing collegiate athletic competition.
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Hearing Analysis
Overview
This hearing examined the rapidly evolving landscape of collegiate athletics, focusing on the transition from traditional amateurism to a system defined by Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) compensation and potential revenue sharing. The discussion centered on whether the current "unsustainable" environment requires federal intervention to establish national standards for NIL, transfer eligibility, and the legal status of student-athletes. Lawmakers and witnesses debated the merits of classifying athletes as employees, the financial viability of non-revenue and Olympic sports, and the necessity of protecting students from exploitation by third-party "collectives" and unscrupulous agents.
Key Testimony & Policy
The testimony highlighted a sharp divide between those advocating for a professionalized labor model and those seeking to preserve the educational mission of college sports. Liam Anderson, representing the National College Players Association (NCPA), and Mikayla Pivec, co-founder of the United College Athletes Association (UCAA), argued that high-revenue athletes in FBS football and Division I basketball meet the legal criteria for employee status. They contended that collective bargaining is the only mechanism to provide enforceable health and safety protections, medical coverage for injuries, and a fair share of the billions in revenue generated by broadcast rights. Anderson specifically noted that a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) would provide the NCAA with a "non-statutory labor exemption" from antitrust laws, allowing for mutually agreed-upon caps on compensation and transfer restrictions that are currently being struck down in court.
Conversely, Abby Lynch, a former student-athlete at the University of Illinois, and Dr. Trayvean Scott, Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics at Grambling State University, warned that an employment model would lead to catastrophic unintended consequences. They argued that classifying students as employees would make scholarships and in-kind benefits (like tutoring and medical care) taxable, potentially creating a net financial loss for athletes in non-revenue sports. Dr. Scott emphasized the "low-resource" perspective, noting that most athletic departments are not profitable and rely on institutional subsidies. He warned that the costs associated with employment—including fringe benefits and Title VII compliance—would force schools to cut sports like baseball, soccer, and tennis to balance budgets.
Specific legislative proposals were a major focal point. Sen. Christopher Murphy (D-CT) promoted the College Athlete Right to Organize Act, which would facilitate unionization. Meanwhile, Republican members discussed the SCORE Act, currently in the House, which seeks to codify that student-athletes are not employees and provides the NCAA with a limited antitrust exemption. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) introduced his "Student Athlete Act," which proposes a five-year eligibility window and a one-time "free" transfer rule to curb the perceived instability of the transfer portal.
Notable Exchanges & Partisan Dynamics
A significant point of contention arose between Sen. Murphy (D-CT) and Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-LA) regarding the financial impact on non-revenue sports. Sen. Murphy characterized the claim that paying athletes would kill Olympic sports as a "red herring" and a "scare tactic" used by wealthy stakeholders to preserve their own high salaries. Chairman Cassidy countered by citing the financial realities of even the most successful programs, noting that despite record-breaking popularity, the women's basketball programs at LSU and the University of South Carolina still operate at multi-million dollar deficits.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) engaged in a pointed exchange with the witnesses regarding the "integrity" of the game, expressing frustration with "28-year-old" athletes competing against teenagers and the "revolving door" of the transfer portal. He argued that the current system has moved too far from education, a sentiment echoed by Collis Temple Jr. of the LSU Board of Supervisors, who advocated for "guardrails" such as age limits and mandatory financial literacy courses to prevent athletes from being "eaten alive" by the tax structure and predatory managers.
Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) highlighted the "tail wagging the dog" dynamic, noting that while the "Power Four" conferences generate the most headlines, they represent less than 10% of student-athletes. He expressed concern that federal policy driven by the needs of elite football programs would inadvertently destroy the athletic departments of hundreds of smaller Division I, II, and III schools that rely on student fees rather than TV contracts.
Organizations Mentioned
- National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA): The primary governing body was criticized by nearly all speakers for failing to lead on NIL and for its history of resisting Title IX and athlete benefits; it is currently lobbying for a federal "bailout" via the SCORE Act. - National College Players Association (NCPA): Represented by Liam Anderson, this advocacy group pushes for employee status and independent health and safety oversight for athletes. - United College Athletes Association (UCAA): A players' association co-founded by Mikayla Pivec that advocates for collective bargaining to secure safety mandates and fair compensation. - Grambling State University (Grambling): Cited by Dr. Trayvean Scott as an example of a "low-resource" institution where athletic scholarships provide essential pathways to social mobility that would be threatened by an employment model. - Louisiana State University (LSU): Mentioned frequently by Chairman Cassidy and Collis Temple Jr. regarding its economic impact on Baton Rouge and the financial losses sustained even by its championship-winning women's basketball team. - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA): Discussed as a model for how a collective bargaining agreement can successfully balance player protections with league sustainability. - U.S. Department of Education (ED): Mentioned by Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) regarding the Office for Civil Rights' (OCR) role in enforcing Title IX amidst concerns over staffing and termination notices.
What's Next
The committee indicated a continued interest in drafting bipartisan legislation to stabilize the NIL landscape. Key upcoming milestones include further debate on the SCORE Act in the House and Sen. Tuberville’s Student Athlete Act in the Senate. Lawmakers also signaled a need to monitor the "House v. NCAA" settlement and its implications for revenue sharing. Witnesses urged Congress to act before further court rulings or state laws create a more fragmented and unmanageable "patchwork" of regulations.
Transcript
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions will please come to order. People love college sports. They go to bars just to watch a game. I bleed purple and gold for LSU, but I like to say that any team in my state, I bleed their colors on game day. And there is nothing like a great football game at LSU Death Valley. You get up early, you tailgate, you watch game day with your friends until it is time to go to the stadium, and it brings people together. There is a community. Ashley Moody just stepped out, but I could even like Ashley Moody because we connect over, you know, SEC sports even though she is a Florida fan. But more importantly, though, as important as that is, student-athletes can change the trajectory of their life by participating in college athletics. Collis Temple, who is a good friend of mine, he is one of our witnesses, will speak of that student-athlete from a small rural town breaking out of poverty, having opportunities they never could have imagined because they get an athletic scholarship. And the family, good people, but the parents had not gone to college, did not have the vision, the athlete then goes to college, maybe the only way they could go to college is with a scholarship, they see the broader world, and their life changes. Sports gives these young people that chance, and parents want it for their children. By the way, not that we need to just a comment for context because we all know it, sports is an economic gold mine. The LSU home football games bring in millions of dollars to Baton Rouge, hotels and restaurants. I go to Phil's Oyster Bar, he says if LSU wins a game, oh my gosh, his business is great for the whole week. And so people go to bars, restaurants, the school benefits, the endowment at the school benefits. In many ways, there is great economic impact. College admissions and application rates to a school which has just won a national championship goes up. We can continue to speak about this multi-billion dollar impact not just upon the student but upon the university, upon the community, upon the state, and all that in a setting which I bring this up, people say it is a wild, wild west. With that context, NIL and everything that has occurred, it just spontaneously people say it is a wild, wild west. For the first time, student-athletes are sharing revenue. Coach Tuberville, who I am sure will be here later, said when he was a coach at Auburn, he advocated for that from the get-go. Even before the NCAA was forced to do it, Coach Tuberville and others were saying there should be revenue sharing. That is a good thing. The bad thing is that I gather that some people are preying upon these young athletes. Not praying like, dear Lord, bless their lives. No, like sign this contract and the contract is not to the advantage of the student-athlete. Exploiting them to make decisions that sometimes leave them without a degree, without being set up for that future success, knowing that according to Coach Tuberville, only 0.2 percent of these athletes will play in the pros. The highest number I have heard is 2 percent. Whatever it is, 98 to 99.8 percent of these athletes will not play in the pros. So the goal of their experience in university should be to set them up for life. The question is, is that happening? Now, clearly the student-athlete should share in the revenue, but it is a false choice to say we must choose between them receiving no revenue sharing and the current system which spontaneously people call the wild, wild west, where as many as 98 percent, I won't quite say that, but a significant percent will lose that setting up for success for the rest of their life. So it is fair to say that court decisions, the lack of rules, leadership hampered by all this has created confusion and potentially opened the door to exploitation. And a common theme I hear aside from wild, wild west is the current system is unsustainable. Title IX violations may be something to consider. In fact, we should consider it to make sure that it isn't, and if Title IX is being violated, we should address it. There doesn't seem to be enough money to turn a student-athlete into an employee-athlete and simultaneously fund non-revenue sports. Because what I am hearing is that if the expense increases too much, schools will cut non-revenue sports and as a result cut off thousands of young people's chances to go to college. By the way, you cannot eliminate women's sports because of Title IX, but you can reduce how much money is being invested and shared with the players, and that is not what we want. At most colleges, sports are not profitable. So the president of the NAIA warned at a round table that many small and medium-sized colleges would not be able to survive the cost of collective bargaining. Think about it. I am not sure that Senator Baldwin is still here. I would be interested in the impact on High Point University if they could keep their basketball program, shall we note in the NCAA tournament took out Wisconsin. You will get your chance. So the current...
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