The U.S. Senate has passed the Protect College Sports Act in bipartisan fashion, but its fate remains uncertain as it moves to the House of Representatives, according to an Oct. 2 report by Wisconsin Public Radio.
The bill, supported by both of Wisconsin’s U.S. Senators, Democrat Tammy Baldwin and Republican Ron Johnson, would set new transfer rules and set a new cap on how much schools can spend on athletes.
By virtue of an anti-trust exemption, it would also give the NCAA the power to enforce many of the rules that had been struck down in an assortment of lawsuits since the beginning of the Name Image and Likeness era in 2021.
The lawsuits led to a settlement that enabled players to transfer freely between schools and be paid by the schools that recruit them, increasing what colleges spend on their athletic programs.
The constant turnover, with universities outbidding one another to poach student athletes, has created a “Wild West” of college sports, according to former University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin and others.
