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H.R. 9137 119th Congress House

Protect College Sports Act of 2026

Official title: To protect the name, image, and likeness rights of, and provide protections for, student athletes and to promote fair competition among intercollegiate athletics, and for other purposes.

Introduced: June 4, 2026 Introduced by: Michael Baumgartner Republican · Washington See on congress.gov
Sports and Recreation AthletesContracts and agencyDigital mediaHigher education
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Inflation and pricesIntellectual propertyLicensing and registrationsSchool athleticsState and local government operationsTelevision and filmUser charges and feesWages and earnings
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 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jun 4, 2026
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Jun 4, 2026
Introduced in House
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What's happening now June 4, 2026

Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Protect College Sports Act of 2026

This bill establishes requirements for name, image, or likeness (NIL) agreements for college student athletes and provides a limited antitrust exemption for schools and conferences to pool and sell certain college sports media rights. The requirements address elements of the court-approved agreement to settle In re College Athlete NIL Litigation (i.e., House settlement).

First, the bill statutorily prohibits institutions, conferences, or interstate intercollegiate athletic associations (e.g., the National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA]) from restricting student athletes from entering NIL agreements (subject to specified limitations). Students must report to their institution NIL compensation greater than $600.

The bill requires agents to register with a state and caps agent endorsement contract fees at 5%.

The bill also provides student athletes with one transfer without losing athletic eligibility and restricts football personnel from becoming the head football coach at a different institution during the same season.

Further, the bill prohibits institutions, conferences, or specified entities acting for the benefit of an institution from providing athletes with compensation that circumvents the limit on sharing revenue with student athletes established under the House settlement. The bill also makes the limit permanent and provides for an annual inflation adjustment.

Additionally, the bill establishes (subject to specified conditions) a limited antitrust exemption for institutions or conferences that form joint agreements to transfer their sports telecasting rights to a third party. Such an agreement requires participation from at least 75% of the institutions in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

 Related & companion bills 1
  • S 4668 Identical bill Protect College Sports Act of 2026
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 3
 Lobbying activity 60

Registered lobbyists who named this bill in their disclosure filings. Source: federal Lobbying Disclosure Act filings.

Bodies those filers lobbied

A filing lists the bills it worked on and the parts of government it contacted in separate sections, so these are the bodies those filers named anywhere in the filing, not a per-bill breakdown.

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 Cosponsors 1
All 1 Republican 1
R
Van Drew, Jefferson
New Jersey · Sep 10, 2026
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 9137: Protect College Sports Act of 2026. 119th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/119-HR-9137/
MLA
"H.R. 9137: Protect College Sports Act of 2026." 119th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/119-HR-9137/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 9137, 119th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/119-HR-9137/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 9137: Protect College Sports Act of 2026](https://openamerica.io/bill/119-HR-9137/)
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