I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8382 

To prohibit a covered athletic association and institution of higher education 

from prohibiting a student athlete from participating in intercollegiate 

athletics because such student athlete enters into an endorsement contract, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 

Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio (for himself, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. STIVERS, Ms. FUDGE, 

Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. DUNCAN, and Mr. 

GOTTHEIMER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee 

on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To prohibit a covered athletic association and institution 

of higher education from prohibiting a student athlete 

from participating in intercollegiate athletics because 

such student athlete enters into an endorsement contract, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Student Athlete Level 

5 Playing Field Act’’. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 8382 IH

1 SEC. 2. STUDENT ATHLETES AND ENDORSEMENT CON2 TRACTS AND AGENCY CONTRACTS. 

3 (a) ABILITY OF A STUDENT ATHLETE TO ENTER

4 INTO AN ENDORSEMENT CONTRACT OR AN AGENCY CON5 TRACT.— 

6 (1) PROHIBITION.—Subject to the exceptions in 

7 paragraph (2), a covered athletic organization or in8 stitution of higher education may not prohibit a stu9 dent athlete from participating in intercollegiate ath10 letics because such student athlete enters into an en11 dorsement contract or an agency contract. 

12 (2) EXCEPTIONS FOR ENDORSEMENT CON13 TRACTS.—A covered athletic organization or institu14 tion of higher education may prohibit a student ath15 lete from entering into an endorsement contract with 

16 the following categories of brands, companies, or 

17 types of contracts: 

18 (A) A tobacco company or brand, including 

19 any vaping device or e-cigarette or related prod20 uct. 

21 (B) Any alcohol company or brand. 

22 (C) Any seller or dispensary of a controlled 

23 substance, including marijuana. 

24 (D) Any adult entertainment business. 

25 (E) Any casino or entities that sponsor or 

26 promote gambling activities. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 8382 IH

1 (3) PERMISSIBLE PROHIBITIONS.—A student 

2 athlete may be prohibited from wearing any item of 

3 clothing or gear with the insignia of any entity dur4 ing any athletic competition or university-sponsored 

5 event. 

6 (b) ENFORCEMENT.— 

7 (1) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRAC8 TICES.—A violation of this section shall be treated 

9 as an unfair and deceptive act or practice in viola10 tion of a regulation under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the 

11 Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

12 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or 

13 practices. 

14 (2) POWERS OF THE FTC.—The Federal Trade 

15 Commission shall enforce this section in the same 

16 manner, by the same means, and with the same ju17 risdiction, powers, and duties as though all applica18 ble terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Com19 mission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). Any person that 

20 violates this section shall be subject to the penalties 

21 and entitled to the privileges and immunities pro22 vided in the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 

23 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). Nothing in this Act shall be con24 strued to limit the authority of the Federal Trade 

25 Commission under any other provision of law. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 8382 IH

1 SEC. 3. COVERED ATHLETIC ORGANIZATION COMMISSION. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Cov3 ered Athletic Organization Commission (in this section re4 ferred to as the ‘‘Commission’’), whose purpose shall be 

5 to— 

6 (1) make recommendations to Congress and to 

7 each covered athletic organization about the imple8 mentation of name, image, and likeness rules; 

9 (2) recommend to each covered athletic organi10 zation such a process to certify or recognize 

11 credentialed athlete agents; 

12 (3) make recommendations for the establish13 ment of an independent dispute resolution process, 

14 for any dispute arising between a student athlete 

15 and a covered athletic organization or institution of 

16 higher education; and 

17 (4) make recommendations for additional cat18 egories of endorsement contracts that are excepted 

19 under section 2(a)(2). 

20 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Commission shall consist of 

21 13 members appointed in accordance with subsection (c) 

22 from among or in accordance with the following: 

23 (1) Institutions of higher education, including 

24 athletic directors and coaches. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 8382 IH

1 (2) At least two individuals who are current or 

2 former student athletes who advocate for the inter3 est of student athletes. 

4 (3) The National Collegiate Athletic Associa5 tion, athletic conference administrators, and admin6 istrators of other covered athletic organizations. 

7 (4) Professionals with expertise in sports mar8 keting, contracting, and public relations. 

9 (5) Individuals— 

10 (A) with expertise in corporate governance; 

11 and 

12 (B) who are not associated with any cov13 ered athletic association or institution of higher 

14 education. 

15 (c) APPOINTMENT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, members of the 

18 Commission shall be appointed as follows: 

19 (A) Three members appointed by the 

20 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

21 (B) Three members appointed by the mi22 nority leader of the House of Representatives. 

23 (C) Three members appointed by the ma24 jority leader of the Senate. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 8382 IH

1 (D) Three members appointed by the mi2 nority leader of the Senate. 

3 (E) One member, who shall be the chair of 

4 the Commission, selected by the members ap5 pointed under subparagraphs (A) through (D) 

6 not later than 60 days after the appointment of 

7 such members, and agreed upon by no fewer 

8 than eight of such members. If eight such mem9 bers are unable to agree on an appointment 

10 under this subparagraph within such 60 day pe11 riod, the Speaker of the House of Representa12 tives shall make the appointment under this 

13 subparagraph. 

14 (2) DIVERSITY.—To the extent practicable, the 

15 Speaker and leaders making appointments under 

16 paragraph (1) shall coordinate their appointments to 

17 ensure that the Commission reflect diversity in gen18 der, race, sport with which they are associated, as 

19 applicable, and divisions or conferences of applicable 

20 covered athletic organizations. 

21 (d) MEETINGS AND QUORUM.—Meetings of the Com22 mission shall be held at the call of the chair appointed 

23 under subsection (c)(1)(E). A meeting may only be held 

24 where there is a quorum of at least 7 members, including 

25 not fewer than two members who are current or former 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 8382 IH

1 student athletes who advocate for the interest of student 

2 athletes. 

3 (e) REPORT.—Not later than one, two, and three 

4 years, respectively, after the Commission shall be con5 stituted, it shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 

6 Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Com7 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

8 Senate annual reports that include the recommendations 

9 in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a). The Com10 mission shall also make such reports available to the pub11 lic. 

12 (f) SUNSET.—The Commission shall terminate 60 

13 days after submitting the final report required under sub14 section (e). 

15 SEC. 4. INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND STU16 DENT ATHLETES WHO ENTER INTO EN17 DORSEMENT CONTRACTS. 

18 Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

19 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(30) In the case of an institution that has a 

22 student attending the institution who is an athlete 

23 and has entered into an endorsement contract (as 

24 defined under section 2 of the Sports Agent Respon25 sibility and Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7801)) or an agenVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:04 Oct 27, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8382.IH H8382

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 8382 IH

1 cy contract (as defined in section 9 of the Student 

2 Athlete Level Playing Field Act), such institution 

3 will not— 

4 ‘‘(A) prohibit such student from entering 

5 into such an endorsement contract or an agency 

6 contract, including through a rule, standard, or 

7 policy that affects the eligibility of such student 

8 to receive athletically related student aid (as de9 fined in section 485(e) of the Higher Education 

10 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(e))); or 

11 ‘‘(B) compensate such student for the 

12 name, image, or likeness of such student.’’. 

13 SEC. 5. PROHIBITING UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE PRACTICES 

14 AGAINST STUDENT ATHLETES. 

15 (a) PROHIBITING UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE PRAC16 TICES BY BOOSTERS.—The Sports Agent Responsibility 

17 and Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7801 et seq.) is amended— 

18 (1) in section 2— 

19 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (4) 

20 through (9) as paragraphs (5) through (10), re21 spectively; and 

22 (B) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

23 following new paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(4) BOOSTER.—The term ‘booster’ means an 

25 individual (other than an individual who is related to 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 8382 IH

1 a student athlete) or an organization, including a 

2 sponsor of an institution’s athletic program, that 

3 provides substantial financial assistance or services 

4 to the athletic program of an institution of higher 

5 education or that promotes a team or athletic pro6 gram of an institution of higher education for such 

7 individual’s or organization’s own substantial finan8 cial interest.’’; 

9 (2) by inserting after section 3 the following 

10 new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 3A. REGULATION OF UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE ACTS 

12 AND PRACTICES IN CONNECTION WITH CON13 TACT BETWEEN A BOOSTER AND A STUDENT 

14 ATHLETE. 

15 ‘‘It is unlawful for a booster to directly or indirectly 

16 provide or offer to provide any funds or thing of value 

17 as an inducement for a student athlete to enroll or remain 

18 at a specific institution or group of institutions.’’; and 

19 (3) in section 5(a)(1), by inserting ‘‘or by the 

20 engagement of any booster in a practice that violates 

21 section 3A’’ after ‘‘section 3’’. 

22 (b) ELIGIBILITY TO COMPETE AS A STUDENT ATH23 LETE AFTER ENTERING INTO AN AGENCY CONTRACT.— 

24 Section 3(b)(3) of the Sports Agent Responsibility and 

25 Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7802(b)(3)) is amended in the 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 8382 IH

1 quoted part by inserting after ‘‘boldface type stating:’’ the 

2 following: ‘‘ ‘Notice to Student Athlete: If you agree orally 

3 or in writing to be represented by an agent now or in the 

4 future, both you and the agent by whom you are agreeing 

5 to be represented must notify the athletic director of the 

6 educational institution at which you are enrolled, or other 

7 individual responsible for athletic programs at such edu8 cational institution, that you have entered into an agency 

9 contract. Such notification must be within 72 hours after 

10 entering into this contract or before the next athletic event 

11 in which you are eligible to participate, whichever occurs 

12 first.’ ’’. 

13 (c) REPORT ON CLAIMS FILED PURSUANT TO THE

14 SPORTS AGENT RESPONSIBILITY AND TRUST ACT.—The 

15 Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 

16 7801 et seq.) is further amended by inserting after section 

17 6 the following new section: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 6A. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

19 ‘‘Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment 

20 of this section, and annually thereafter, the Commission 

21 shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

22 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

23 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

24 report summarizing any investigation or enforcement ac25 tion brought by the Commission pursuant to this Act, inVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:04 Oct 27, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8382.IH H8382

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 8382 IH

1 cluding the number of complaints filed with the Commis2 sion pursuant to this Act.’’. 

3 SEC. 6. STATE PREEMPTION. 

4 No State may enforce a State law or regulation with 

5 respect to permitting or abridging the ability of a student 

6 athlete attending an institution of higher education to 

7 enter into an endorsement contract or agency contract 

8 pursuant to this Act or by an amendment made by this 

9 Act. 

10 SEC. 7. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. 

11 (a) TAX PROVISIONS.—Nothing in this Act or the 

12 amendments made by this Act shall affect the treatment 

13 of qualified scholarships under section 117 of the Internal 

14 Revenue Code of 1986. 

15 (b) NONDISCRIMINATION OF STUDENT ATHLETES.— 

16 Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this Act 

17 may be construed to affect the rights of student athletes 

18 or affect any program funded under title IX of the Edu19 cation Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.). 

20 (c) ANTITRUST LAWS.—Nothing in this Act or the 

21 amendments made by this Act shall provide a cause of 

22 action pursuant to the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. 1 et seq.). 

23 (d) STUDENT ATHLETE NOT CONSIDERED AN EM24 PLOYEE.—Nothing in this Act or the amendments made 

25 by this Act shall affect the employment status of a student 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 8382 IH

1 athlete who enters into an endorsement contract with re2 spect to a covered athletic organization or institution of 

3 higher education. 

4 SEC. 8. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

5 It is the sense of Congress that— 

6 (1) institutions of higher education should de7 velop a course or program to assist student athletes 

8 with understanding financial literacy with respect to 

9 entering into an endorsement contract; and 

10 (2) the Federal Trade Commission should in11 vestigate each claim filed pursuant to the Sports 

12 Agent Responsibility and Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7801 

13 et seq.). 

14 SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this Act— 

16 (1) the term ‘‘agency contract’’ means an oral 

17 or written agreement in which a student athlete au18 thorizes a person to negotiate or solicit an endorse19 ment contract on behalf of the student athlete; 

20 (2) the terms ‘‘athlete agent’’, ‘‘endorsement 

21 contract’’, and ‘‘student athlete’’ shall have the same 

22 meaning as such terms defined in section 2 of the 

23 Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act (15 

24 U.S.C. 7801); 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 8382 IH

1 (3) the term ‘‘covered athletic organization’’ 

2 means an athletic association, conference, or other 

3 organization with authority over intercollegiate ath4 letics or that administers intercollegiate athletics; 

5 and 

6 (4) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 

7 has the same meaning as that term under section 

8 101 of the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS