I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2841 

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 

APRIL 26, 2021 

Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio (for himself, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. RODNEY DAVIS of 

Illinois, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mr. STIVERS, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. HUDSON, and 

Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas) 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’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. CONTRACTS RELATING TO STUDENT ATHLETES 

2 AND COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC 

3 PROGRAMS. 

4 (a) PROHIBITION.—Subject to the exceptions in sub5 section (b), a covered athletic organization or institution 

6 of higher education may not prohibit a student athlete 

7 from participating in intercollegiate athletics because such 

8 student athlete enters into an agency contract or an en9 dorsement contract or otherwise receives consideration for 

10 such student athlete’s name, image, or likeness. 

11 (b) EXCEPTIONS FOR ENDORSEMENT CONTRACTS.— 

12 A covered athletic organization or institution of higher 

13 education may prohibit a student athlete from entering 

14 into an endorsement contract with the following categories 

15 of brands, companies, or types of contracts: 

16 (1) A tobacco company or brand, including any 

17 vaping device or e-cigarette or related product. 

18 (2) Any alcohol company or brand. 

19 (3) Any seller or dispensary of a controlled sub20 stance, including marijuana. 

21 (4) Any adult entertainment business. 

22 (5) Any casino or entity whose primary busi23 ness is sponsoring or promotion of gambling activi24 ties. 

25 (c) PERMISSIBLE PROHIBITIONS.—A student athlete 

26 may be prohibited by the institution of higher education 


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1 of the student athlete from wearing any item of clothing 

2 or gear with the insignia of any entity during any athletic 

3 competition or athletic-related university-sponsored event. 

4 (d) RESULTANT PROHIBITIONS ON INSTITUTIONS OF

5 HIGHER EDUCATION FROM ENTERING INTO CERTAIN

6 SPONSORSHIP AND ENDORSEMENT CONTRACTS.— 

7 (1) FROM PROHIBITIONS ON ATHLETES.—If a 

8 covered athletic organization or institution of higher 

9 education prohibits a student athlete from entering 

10 into an endorsement contract pursuant to subsection 

11 (b), such covered athletic organization or institution 

12 of higher education may not enter into or continue 

13 in any sponsorship or endorsement contract for itself 

14 with the same category or categories of brands, com15 panies, or types of contracts described in paragraphs 

16 (1) through (5) of such subsection. 

17 (2) FROM PROHIBITIONS BY A COVERED ATH18 LETIC ORGANIZATION.—If a covered athletic organi19 zation prohibits a student athlete from entering into 

20 a contract pursuant to subsection (b), any institu21 tion of higher education that is a part of that cov22 ered athletic organization may not enter into any 

23 sponsorship or endorsement contract for itself with 

24 the same category or categories of brands, compaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:10 Jun 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2841.IH H2841

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1 nies, or types of contracts described in paragraphs 

2 (1) through (5) of such subsection. 

3 SEC. 3. ENFORCEMENT. 

4 (a) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRACTICES.— 

5 A violation of section 2 shall be treated as an unfair and 

6 deceptive act or practice in violation of a regulation under 

7 section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act 

8 (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive 

9 acts or practices. 

10 (b) POWERS OF THE FTC.—The Federal Trade 

11 Commission shall enforce this section in the same manner, 

12 by the same means, and with the same jurisdiction, pow13 ers, and duties as though all applicable terms and provi14 sions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 

15 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made part of this 

16 Act. Any person that violates this section shall be subject 

17 to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immuni18 ties provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 

19 U.S.C. 41 et seq.). Nothing in this Act shall be construed 

20 to limit the authority of the Federal Trade Commission 

21 under any other provision of law. 

22 SEC. 4. COVERED ATHLETIC ORGANIZATION COMMISSION. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Cov24 ered Athletic Organization Commission (in this section reVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:10 Jun 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2841.IH H2841

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1 ferred to as the ‘‘Commission’’), whose purpose shall be 

2 to— 

3 (1) make recommendations to Congress and to 

4 each covered athletic organization about the imple5 mentation of name, image, and likeness rules; 

6 (2) recommend to each covered athletic organi7 zation such a process to certify or recognize 

8 credentialed athlete agents; 

9 (3) make recommendations for the establish10 ment of an independent dispute resolution process, 

11 for any dispute arising between a student athlete 

12 and a covered athletic organization or institution of 

13 higher education; and 

14 (4) make recommendations for additional cat15 egories of endorsement contracts that are excepted 

16 under section 2(b). 

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

18 13 members appointed in accordance with subsection (c) 

19 from among or in accordance with the following: 

20 (1) Institutions of higher education, including 

21 athletic directors and coaches. 

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

23 former student athletes who advocate for the inter24 est of student athletes. 


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1 (3) Administrators of covered athletic organiza2 tions. 

3 (4) Professionals with expertise in sports mar4 keting, contracting, and public relations. 

5 (5) Individuals— 

6 (A) with expertise in corporate governance; 

7 and 

8 (B) who are not associated with any cov9 ered athletic association or institution of higher 

10 education. 

11 (c) APPOINTMENT.— 

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

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

14 Commission shall be appointed as follows: 

15 (A) Three members appointed by the 

16 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

17 (B) Three members appointed by the mi18 nority leader of the House of Representatives. 

19 (C) Three members appointed by the ma20 jority leader of the Senate. 

21 (D) Three members appointed by the mi22 nority leader of the Senate. 

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

24 the Commission, selected by the members ap25 pointed under subparagraphs (A) through (D) 


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1 not later than 60 days after the appointment of 

2 such members, and agreed upon by no fewer 

3 than eight of such members. If eight such mem4 bers are unable to agree on an appointment 

5 under this subparagraph within such 60 day pe6 riod, the Speaker of the House of Representa7 tives shall make the appointment under this 

8 subparagraph. 

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

10 Speaker and leaders making appointments under 

11 paragraph (1) shall coordinate their appointments to 

12 ensure that the Commission reflect diversity in gen13 der, race, sport with which they are associated, as 

14 applicable, and shall prioritize the appointment of 

15 members unaffiliated with divisions or conferences of 

16 applicable covered athletic organizations. 

17 (d) MEETINGS AND QUORUM.—Meetings of the Com18 mission shall be held at the call of the chair appointed 

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

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

21 not fewer than two members who are current or former 

22 student athletes who advocate for the interest of student 

23 athletes. 

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

25 years, respectively, after the Commission shall be conVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:10 Jun 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2841.IH H2841

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1 stituted, it shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 

2 Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Com3 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

4 Senate annual reports that include the recommendations 

5 in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a). The Com6 mission shall also make such reports available to the pub7 lic. 

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

9 days after submitting the final report required under sub10 section (e). 

11 SEC. 5. INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND STU12 DENT ATHLETES WHO ENTER INTO EN13 DORSEMENT CONTRACTS. 

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

15 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 

16 following: 

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

18 student attending the institution who is an athlete 

19 and has entered into an endorsement contract (as 

20 defined under section 2 of the Sports Agent Respon21 sibility and Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7801)) or an agen22 cy contract (as defined in section 9 of the Student 

23 Athlete Level Playing Field Act), such institution 

24 will not— 


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1 ‘‘(A) prohibit such student from entering 

2 into such an endorsement contract or an agency 

3 contract, including through a rule, standard, or 

4 policy that affects the eligibility of such student 

5 to receive athletically related student aid (as de6 fined in section 485(e) of the Higher Education 

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

8 ‘‘(B) compensate such student for the 

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

10 SEC. 6. PROHIBITING UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE PRACTICES 

11 AGAINST STUDENT ATHLETES. 

12 (a) PROHIBITING UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE PRAC13 TICES BY BOOSTERS.—The Sports Agent Responsibility 

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

15 (1) in section 2— 

16 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (4) 

17 through (9) as paragraphs (5) through (10), re18 spectively; and 

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

20 following new paragraph: 

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

22 individual (other than an individual who is related to 

23 a student athlete) or an organization, including a 

24 sponsor of an institution’s athletic program, that 

25 provides substantial financial assistance or services 


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1 to the athletic program of an institution of higher 

2 education or that promotes a team or athletic pro3 gram of an institution of higher education for such 

4 individual’s or organization’s own substantial finan5 cial interest.’’; 

6 (2) by inserting after section 3 the following 

7 new section: 

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

9 AND PRACTICES IN CONNECTION WITH CON10 TACT BETWEEN A BOOSTER AND A STUDENT 

11 ATHLETE. 

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

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

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

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

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

17 engagement of any booster in a practice that violates 

18 section 3A’’ after ‘‘section 3’’. 

19 (b) ELIGIBILITY TO COMPETE AS A STUDENT ATH20 LETE AFTER ENTERING INTO AN AGENCY CONTRACT.— 

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

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

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

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

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


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

2 to be represented must notify the athletic director of the 

3 educational institution at which you are enrolled, or other 

4 individual responsible for athletic programs at such edu5 cational institution, that you have entered into an agency 

6 contract. Such notification must be within 72 hours after 

7 entering into this contract or before the next athletic event 

8 in which you are eligible to participate, whichever occurs 

9 first.’ ’’. 

10 (c) REPORT ON CLAIMS FILED PURSUANT TO THE

11 SPORTS AGENT RESPONSIBILITY AND TRUST ACT.—The 

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

13 7801 et seq.) is further amended by inserting after section 

14 6 the following new section: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 6A. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

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

17 of this section, and annually thereafter, the Commission 

18 shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

19 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

20 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

21 report summarizing any investigation or enforcement ac22 tion brought by the Commission pursuant to this Act, in23 cluding the number of complaints filed with the Commis24 sion pursuant to this Act.’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. STATE PREEMPTION. 

2 No State may enforce a State law or regulation with 

3 respect to permitting or abridging the ability of a student 

4 athlete attending an institution of higher education to 

5 enter into an endorsement contract or agency contract 

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

7 Act. 

8 SEC. 8. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION. 

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

10 amendments made by this Act shall affect the treatment 

11 of qualified scholarships under section 117 of the Internal 

12 Revenue Code of 1986. 

13 (b) NONDISCRIMINATION OF STUDENT ATHLETES.— 

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

15 may be construed to affect the rights of student athletes 

16 or affect any program funded under title IX of the Edu17 cation Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.). 

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

19 amendments made by this Act shall provide a cause of 

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

21 (d) STUDENT ATHLETE NOT CONSIDERED AN EM22 PLOYEE.—Nothing in this Act or the amendments made 

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

24 athlete who enters into an endorsement contract with re25 spect to a covered athletic organization or institution of 

26 higher education. 


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1 SEC. 9. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) institutions of higher education and covered 

4 athletic organizations should develop a course or 

5 program to assist student athletes with under6 standing financial literacy with respect to entering 

7 into an endorsement contract; and 

8 (2) the Federal Trade Commission should in9 vestigate each claim filed pursuant to the Sports 

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

11 et seq.). 

12 SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this Act— 

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

15 or written agreement in which a student athlete au16 thorizes a person to negotiate or solicit an endorse17 ment contract on behalf of the student athlete; 

18 (2) the terms ‘‘athlete agent’’ and ‘‘student ath19 lete’’ shall have the same meaning given such terms 

20 in section 2 of the Sports Agent Responsibility and 

21 Trust Act (15 U.S.C. 7801); 

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

23 means an athletic association, conference, or other 

24 organization with authority over intercollegiate ath25 letics or that administers intercollegiate athletics; 


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1 (4) the term ‘‘endorsement contract’’ has the 

2 meaning given such term in section 2 of the Sports 

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

4 7801); and 

5 (5) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 

6 has the same meaning as that term under section 

7 101 of the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

Æ 


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