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S 1929 117th Congress Senate Labor and Employment Athletes Employment discrimination and employee rights Higher education Labor-management relations National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) School athletics Student aid and college costs

College Athlete Right To Organize Act

Introduced: May 27, 2021 Introduced by: Murphy, Christopher Democratic · Connecticut See on congress.gov
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This bill died when the 117th Congress ended
It never became law before the 117th Congress (2021–2022) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 27, 2021
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
May 27, 2021
Introduced in Senate
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 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

College Athlete Right To Organize Act

This bill establishes collective bargaining rights for college athletes.

Specifically, the bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to (1) define college athlete employee as an employee of an institution of higher education if the individual receives direct compensation from the institution and such compensation requires participation in intercollegiate sports, and (2) include public institutions as employers within the context of intercollegiate sports.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) must consider the colleges within an athletic conference as part of a bargaining unit with which college athletes can negotiate.

The NLRB shall have jurisdiction over all institutions of higher education within the context of intercollegiate athletics regarding collective bargaining and representation matters and labor disputes.

The bill prohibits any agreements, such as scholarship agreements, that waive the right of athletes to collectively bargain.

What's happening now May 27, 2021

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

 Related & companion bills 1
  • HR 3895 Identical bill College Athlete Right to Organize Act
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
 Cosponsors 1
All 1 Independent 1
I
Sanders, Bernard
Vermont · May 27, 2021
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 1929: College Athlete Right To Organize Act. 117th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/117-S-1929/
MLA
"S. 1929: College Athlete Right To Organize Act." 117th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/117-S-1929/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 1929, 117th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/117-S-1929/.
Markdown link
[S. 1929: College Athlete Right To Organize Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/117-S-1929/)
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