Transcripts For CSPAN2 Senate Hearing On Integrity Of Colleg

Will make an Opening Statement and senator booker and senator blumenthal. The title of the hearing today is protecting the integrity of College Athletics. Like most americans one of the highlights with basketball. And its a lot of fun its going to be really big business with collegeage athletics and its all built around the model and then the challenge that the Business Model is fair without destroying the immature nature of the game with the collegeage Athletic Team thats the end of their career and to get compensated they get scholarships and room and board but to go into the private sector that the College Athletic experience is something i want to preserve and those that will not turn that into their livelihood those that require College Athletics for the opportunities for women and thats a good thing. So at the highest level College Athletics football. The football budget supports everything else. If youre an athlete how do we treat you fairly without turning it all into minorleague sport . What i worry about the most is the onetwo punch. Three states have now passed legislation california and colorado and california for name and likeness and images of College Athletes to be reimbursed. We cannot start a bidding war for recruits with 50 different approaches with a pre beer athlete alumni and Business Enterprises and then to create a bidding war with no end. There is a National Solution to this growing problem. We cannot allow to this to turn into a bidding war in the wild wild west. So i just the destruction a lot of people gamble it is part of america but then there is the second punch with the integrity of the sport those on the Sports Betting business and online you believe its very hard to control to worry about the impact with College Athletics with that Supreme Court decisio decision. You can literally bet on almost anything. That is unnerving and with that great lineup of witnesses but the one thing i am convinced that the federal government needs to get control of this before we allow the wild wild west to take over with these issues. We do have a great lineup of witnesses i want to thank the chairman to give us this opportunity and senator feinstein giving me the opportunity i will not take offense for your failure mr. Chairman for my illustrious career in College Sports. I was saving that for the end. As a member of the Harvard Swimming Team i was neither the star nor the grade athlete my colleague senator booker was at stanford. This brings us a very important hearing and i want to seriously think my colleague senator booker to be the quarterback and the star. And the framework with the bill of rights to protect athletes and i will enumerate some of them today with the framework and those set of principles it is important to make sure colleges put Athletes First. And the point is athletes need to be given priority. So the blood sweat and tears is what fuels a 14 billiondollar industry. But for far too long special interest have hidden a multibilliondollar industry under the masquerade of amateurism. And then as they resist all reform their response to athletes was a blanket now. Takes to those College Athletes themselves to step up and speak out a growing number that ensures them some rates over their own name and image and likeness some have health and educational safeguards only after they took that action and start to pass laws. Did we hear from the urgent need of congress to act . The pattern is familiar when they start taking action to consumers industry comes forward asking for a National Standard some in the ncaa proposal that many of us feel is allimportant and with real protection for the Athletes First they are to hear that message loud and clear to have fair compensation for their work. And that they create through their photos this is a matter of equity the athletes have to be protected against these practices and there is a Racial Justice to mention here. And that has racial and Economic Justice and healthcare justice. And with that systematic Racial Injustices of entire society for those that generate the highest revenue disproportionately played by students of color. That is an undeniable fact that the Current System denies access that the labor generates thats unfair and unjust and Racial Injustice as well as economic injustice. I am proud to announce and working with senator booker with the bill of rights to succeed the ncaa has too often failed and with collegeage athletes and the framework empowered and to protect the athletes and asked them to market their name and image and likeness and also ensure they have the opportunity to negotiate revenue agreements with the athletic is to association and it would empower and protect students right to an education and to enable them beyond their academic and athletic career. Only 55 percent of black male athletes and then with commensurate lifetime scholarships to give them more time to complete their degree. And that to create the Oversight Panel and then to make sure they have a real voice in the frying framework protects the health and wellbeing of the student athlete nothing is more important it is unacceptable College Athletes are literally dying from the heat related illnesses with all sports injuries including concussions. To have comprehensive Health Care Coverage in support with sports related injuries. And then with real enforcement. And with my own career in Law Enforcement and with those protections across the Country Schools are rushing to bring back on campus youre watching a slow motion made want colleges to reopen has to be done safely to put Athletes First. And those outbreaks in schools like ohio and university of North Carolina schools in the ncaa to prioritize and then did that from the start but not be basic rates so let me conclude by saying congress has an opportunity to go forward on a bipartisan basis and then to make their own decisions with their own College Athletes first. You shed come down to the gym. [laughter] first of all thank you to the gentle man on my right the Ranking Member smith this is very personal for me. With the overly gracious with the all american but i was the most highly overrated athlete and with those receiving yards. [laughter] so im just grateful and this really means a lot to me personally literally since i was a College Student i wouldnt be here today if not for the time i spent as a division i Football Player the lessons that i learned it is invaluable i stand on that foundation i am a senator in part because of those experiences. And that strategy and planning and for me it was an incredible experience with opportunity and those that never knew existed and unfortunately for far too many they are not empowering young people to succeed. And exploiting them and then exploiting young black athletes who are overrepresented and then the labor contributes to the 15 billiondollar industry but they see none of it. And then to fly their parents out just to see one game in person. College athletes to sustain many serious injuries to follow them the rest of their lives. But the way things stand to have access to healthcare often paying out of their own pockets for injuries they sustained and the problem is what we are here today to discuss College Athletes after name college in likeness that is all we have been doing when it comes to the problems of College Sports. The Ranking Member said it quite plain. In 2014 is only two hearings in my life ive lost my temper but in 2014 in a hearing when we discussed the same issues years ago and was then before the Commerce Committee and the Ranking Member said we have no significant progress whatsoever this is why ive honor to work with the Ranking Member and incredible staff to be in conversation for those to be determined to stop expectation they were largely the same when i was a College Athlete i saw this two decades ago the ncaa has failed generations of young men with the basic responsibility. And then to graduate with a degree. I see the ncaa 90 percent Graduation Rate but that just tells part of the story we see a different story. Just 55 percent of black men graduate within 60 years six years and the ncaa continues to fight tooth and nail excuse after excuse that they specifically black athletes with the outside amount to share in a 15 billiondollar industry. Featuring 15 billiondollar media deals coaching facilities that rival professional lease. The students producing that revenue on the field often end up with medical bills throughout their lives and without a College Degree and is plainly unacceptable. And based on the plan from nca ncaa, that shows no sign of changing. The proposals are too restrictive to benefit College Athletes even more. s and then to allow for different rules was statebystate. They are symbols of reform with a proposed but they are not performed. The a5 proposal would allow each individual endorsement it would be permissible and what would not. It is so restrictive it would prevent College Athletes from having any endorsement deals that doesnt have the existing contract with the institution or any competitors. And then sunset after ten years blocking individual states from making progress on the image and likeness to put all of us back here. The time has come for substantive form. And then was sustained levels of exploitation. You pull out your knee your junior year in college even get a guaranteed scholarship the next year they can cast you aside like a piece of meat. This goes on in the ncaa. I am grateful for the work going on with his work on creating a set of Guiding Principles that something i will work very hard on with this much Common Ground as possible to have unified voice to those who want to and athlete exploitation i will continue to work with my democratic colleagues to put together this proposal that the Ranking Member just said with health and wellness standards. And then we cant even guarantee they have a real education im grateful to have a conversation like this and before it comes with us and then we should be insuring the United States senate with their the health and wellbeing and education. I promise you three states decided to pass legislation. Two of the states january 1st 2023. You dont want the wild wild west. I know very well. And the National Football League Players association and the executive director National College Players Association thank you for participating the floor is yours. Thank you chairman graham and senator blumenthal the other 64 institutions and the other conferences thank you for providing this opportunity. It was a friend to many working with georgia tech. To leave the indelible mark on this country. And then to hold those possessions and at the university of miami in Long Beach State South Carolina and Louisiana State university. My athletic career started in on Scholarship Division ii player that has a tremendous opportunity with all aspects of their lives to have all the tools that they need for the road to success with the full list the benefits in my testimony for the record. A Diverse Group of student athletes is what the American Athletics unit. That model we are asking congress to preserve for the benefit of all student athletes. Acc and peers are asking congress to step in and take action. Three states party passed laws alert thirdparty payments one of them takes effect last the year from today. Many states are considering similar. To preserve the integrity of competition and conflict athletics, we need one universal and fair National Standard on an il. To accomplish this, five, versus Work Together to develop consensus principles for national and il solution. First and most important, we must recognize we are dealing with students who are and should remain students and not employees. We cant allow to dissolve into a Training Ground for handful of future professionals and infringes on the integrity of the process. Without productions, its a situation in which payments for licenses unconnected to the actual market value becomes the dominant factor in recruiting. In addition to influencing recruiting, funding a shift away from lower Revenue Generating sports, forming the older student population and potentially having title ix consequences. In addition to recruitment concerns, unscrupulous outside actors seeking to take advantage of student athletes. To protect student athletes, we recommend influencing safeguards with respect to an il agents and advisors, disclosure of representation to the students university, Public Disclosure of the nail licenses. We recommend allowing individual universities to ensure an il agreements are consistent with universities external marketing programs. In order to assist student athletes and families who may lack the experience to navigate this new world, i personally believe there should be an independent thirdparty organization to provide education, support and Oversight Services to the student athletes across the country. Finally, once congress and ask a system of an il rules, i urge you to ensure universities and conferences are not penalized for complying with such rules. Travel fair and final an appeal system that benefits all student athletes, we need legislation that enables students to benefit from there and il rights and allow universities and conferences to facilitate these rights and prevent further litigation for doing so. As we shape the future of nal, is my Hope Congress will consider not only the most recognizable student athletes but the multitude of student athletes to participate in our olympic sports. On behalf of lead one, National Athletic directors organization where i serve as chair, we are grateful for your attention to this issue and we look forward to working with you. Thank you. Thank you. Good afternoon. Its an honor and my pleasure to testify before you today. My name is matt, law professor and executive director of National Sports Law Institute at Marquette University law school. More than 30 years, ive been studying and writing about various College Sports legal issues including ncaa student athletes ability rules and i trust issues which have implications for congressional consideration of federal name, image and license for student athletes. Casebycase litigation to resolve the ni solidity of ncaa student athlete eligibility rules, its not an optimal method of regulating sports Competition Among Nonprofit Institutions of Higher Education. Its only resulted in conflicting judicial decisions creating legal uncertainty predictable and i trust law as well as being expensive and timeconsuming. Do not consider legitimate on economic justifications for student athletes eligibility rules because its only prohibitory in nature, federal antitrust law can function only as an instrument that joined anticompetitive competent by institutions of Higher Education without considering collateral effects on athletics. Congress can consider multiple social goals in connection with athletics. For example, if fighting the scope of permissible and il licensing, maximizing College Sports and scholarships and advancing title ix gender equity. As well as the interest of all constituencies likely to be affected by a federal name image and likeness law particularly all the 460,000 male and female student athletes will play 24 ncaa intercollegiate sports in College Sports. I fully agree with senators graham, blumentha