I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5812 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to cap certain intercollegiate 
athletics compensation and buyouts as a condition of institutional partici-
pation in Federal student aid programs, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 24, 2025 
Mr. BAUMGARTNER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Workforce 
A BILL 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to cap certain 
intercollegiate athletics compensation and buyouts as a 
condition of institutional participation in Federal student 
aid programs, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Correcting Oppor-
tunity and Accountability in Collegiate Hiring Act 
(COACH Act)’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
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(a) Intercollegiate athletics, when properly governed, 
promote student development and broad-based participa-
tion aligned with educational missions. 
(b) Institutions participating in programs under title 
IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 
et seq.) receive substantial Federal support and tax advan-
tages, creating a heightened obligation to manage athletics 
in service of educational priorities and equal opportunity. 
(c) Escalating compensation and buyouts for athletics 
personnel can divert resources from academic priorities 
and broad-based opportunities, including women’s and 
Olympic sports, and warrant reasonable, uniform guard-
rails as a condition of title IV participation. 
(d) Federal courts have held that the National Colle-
giate Athletic Association’s caps on coaches’ pay violate 
antitrust laws—e.g., Law v. NCAA (10th Cir. 1998) per-
manently enjoining the NCAA’s ‘‘restricted-earnings 
coach’’ salary cap rule—and have continued to scrutinize 
coach-compensation restraints (including rules setting 
compensation to zero); therefore, any statutory cap must 
be accompanied by a targeted antitrust safe harbor to per-
mit collective implementation and enforcement. 
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SEC. 3. PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENTS. 
Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(30) LIMITATIONS ON INTERCOLLEGIATE ATH-
LETICS COMPENSATION AND BUYOUTS.— 
‘‘(A) COMPENSATION CAP.—As a condition 
of eligibility under this title, the institution 
shall ensure that the total annual compensation 
paid, promised, or provided to any athletics de-
partment employee does not exceed 10 times 
the institution’s tuition and required fees for a 
first-time, full-time undergraduate for the most 
recent academic year. 
‘‘(B) BUYOUTS
AND
SEPARATION
PAY-
MENTS.—Any payment to terminate, buy out, 
or settle an employment agreement with an ath-
letics department employee shall be treated as 
compensation for purposes of subparagraph (A) 
in the year paid, and may not cause the cap in 
subparagraph (A) to be exceeded. 
‘‘(C) CONFERENCE AND AFFILIATE COV-
ERAGE.—The institution shall ensure compli-
ance with this paragraph for any agreement en-
tered by an athletics conference, media-rights 
consortium, collective, foundation, or other affil-
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iate that allocates, assigns, or provides com-
pensation or buyouts to the institution’s ath-
letics department employees. 
‘‘(D) CERTIFICATION AND DISCLOSURE.— 
The Secretary shall require annual program 
participation agreement certification that the 
institution and its affiliates are in compliance 
with this paragraph and shall require public 
disclosure of the cap amount for the year and 
the tuition and required fees figure used to cal-
culate it and the number of covered employees 
whose total annual compensation is within 10 
percent of the cap. 
‘‘(E) TRANSITION.— 
‘‘(i) Written employment agreements 
executed before the date of this Act may 
continue for their remaining original term 
(excluding extensions or renewals), pro-
vided that the agreement and scheduled 
payments are disclosed under subpara-
graph (D); and no amendment increases 
compensation above amounts stated in the 
agreement as of the date of this Act. 
‘‘(ii) PROSPECTIVE
COMPLIANCE.— 
Agreements executed on or after the date 
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of this Act shall comply with this para-
graph. 
‘‘(F) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph, 
the term: 
‘‘(i) Athletics department employee— 
means any employee of the institution (or 
of a related organization acting for the in-
stitution) whose primary duties relate to 
intercollegiate athletics, including head and 
assistant coaches, the director of athletics, 
associate or assistant athletic directors, 
and senior athletics administrators. 
‘‘(ii) Tuition and required fees— 
means the published undergraduate tuition 
and required fees for a first-time, full-time 
undergraduate student at the institution, 
as reported to the Integrated Postsec-
ondary Education Data System pursuant 
to section 487(a)(17) of the Higher Edu-
cation 
Act 
of 
1965 
(20 
U.S.C. 
1094(a)(17)). For public institutions with 
differential resident and nonresident rates, 
the in-state figure applies. 
‘‘(iii) Athletics conference—means a 
voluntary association of institutions of 
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