College Athlete Economic Freedom Act

This bill would set one national standard for college athletes’ name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights. It lets athletes earn money from endorsements and other NIL deals—on their own or as a group—and stops colleges or college sports associations from blocking them or working together to cap what athletes can be paid. If a school wants to use a group of athletes in promotions (like media rights deals), it must get a group license and tell the athletes how their NIL will be used and how much revenue the school will get. Getting paid for NIL would not affect scholarships.

Athletes can hire agents, financial advisors, and lawyers, and schools can’t punish them or control who represents them. Schools and school-backed NIL “collectives” must offer NIL help fairly across genders, races, and sports; collectives must register with the Federal Trade Commission, file yearly reports with deal counts and dollars by gender, race, and sport, and cannot discriminate. Gender equity in how schools support NIL is part of compliance checks. People can’t be forced to sign away these rights, except if a future bargaining agreement with athletes says so.

International student-athletes on F visas could do NIL work and be paid without risking their visa status. A school official’s note on the student’s I‑20 form would count as work authorization. If a court ever says college athletes are employees, international athletes could still keep their student status and be paid like others.

The Federal Trade Commission would enforce these rules, and athletes could sue to recover damages and attorney’s fees. The bill would also set a single national rule, blocking conflicting state NIL laws (states could still certify athlete agents). It does not change how scholarships are treated for taxes. The Commerce Department could fund annual, public studies of the NIL market, including pay estimates by gender, race, and sport, with ideas to reduce unfair gaps.

Key points

• Who is affected: College athletes (current and future), international student‑athletes, colleges and college sports associations, and school‑backed NIL collectives.
• What changes: Athletes can make NIL deals without school limits; schools can’t collude to cap pay; group use of athlete NIL requires a license; scholarships stay safe; athletes can choose their own reps; NIL support must be fair and reported publicly; international athletes can do NIL work; and there’s federal enforcement plus the right to sue.