Getting the Protect College Sports Act passed before the fall recess was going to be hard. Everyone knew that.
There was no surprise when Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported on Friday that the bill was highly unlikely to get further than a cloture vote before recess.
What happened? What usually happens in Congress. When the bill reached the floor, Senators offered amendments. One amendment from Sen. Ashley Moody (R-Fla) would allow power conference schools to waive the five-year waiting period to change a conference IF they do so within 180 days of the bill’s enactment. That would likely cause one last flurry of conference realignment.
The Senate tried to pass several bills by unanimous consent on Friday, including this one, but it got nowhere.
But along with the amendments, another objection is worth noting when Senators return from recess — assuming the bill can’t be rescued on Saturday.
‘Testicles and a Spine’
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) spent part of the day considering whether to offer an amendment that would cap ticket price increases at four percent annually. He had a hold on the bill, which was preventing it from moving forward in the Senate.
Trying to cap the annual increase in ticket prices is a laudable pursuit. But it’s what Sen. Kennedy said he also wanted to ensure that should make everyone take notice.
Per Burgess Everett of Semafor, which covers politics, Kennedy also wanted to “make sure that this legislation doesn’t — either intentionally or unintentionally — absolve the NCAA, which lacks testicles and a spine, of any liability.”
You know what’s interesting? The Protect College Sports Act will, if passed, grant the NCAA and its member conferences targeted and limited antitrust liability protections, also known as safe harbor.
That would allow them to legally enforce their rules without facing anti-trust lawsuits. That would include compensation caps, revenue sharing, transfer windows, and student-athlete eligibility. It would limit the NCAA’s liability in the issues that have bedeviled it for years.
Let’s say Sen. Kennedy is serious and this isn’t just bluster. Let’s say he really does want to ensure the NCAA isn’t absolved of liability. Well, he can’t support this bill as written. The PCSA does basically what he objects to. It gives the NCAA the same antitrust protection the four major professional sports have. Those four leagues, however, must collectively bargain with their players. The NCAA doesn’t want to have to do that.
If Sen. Kennedy holds the line, then good luck.
