Trump’s College Sports Reform Plan a Likely Victim of Midterm Election

The results of the midterm election may signal the end — at least for now — of a legislative effort sold as a major reform of college sports.Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Maria Cantwell of Washington co-sponsored the Protect College Sports Act of 2026. In September the Senate passed it on a 77-22 vote, but the House was unable to move it across the finish line before lawmakers left Washington ahead of the election. It’s now unlikely to get a vote during the lame duck after Republicans expressed concerns about dozens of pages of new federal rules and regulations and Democrats worried that the legislation could open black athletes to exploitation. “The Protect College Sports Act is probably dead,” the founder of sports law firm Heitner Legal, Darren Heitner, said on X.College football, and to a lesser extent college basketball, have turned into huge revenue streams for universities. At the same time, federal courts have loosened pay-for-play rules, college eligibility rules, and other rules that have started to share more of the financial windfall with top athletes in their sports. The payouts have gotten so large for the top athletes that they can make more money by playing for a college team than turning professional and joining a league with salary caps.President Trump had pushed for reforms, signing an executive order in April “to protect college sports from endless lawsuits and destabilizing financial obligations that could jeopardize women’s and Olympic sports.”The legislation was billed as a way to stamp out the chaos that has ruled college sports in recent years. It would create a uniform system for name, image and likeness agreements that college athletes can enter into to profit from athletics. It would also restrict the number of times that a student athlete could transfer between schools and create a five-year eligibility window for athletes to play college sports once they turn 19 or finish high school.It was also designed to protect women’s sports by requiring large athletic departments to maintain baseline roster spots and scholarship minimums. It would grant the National Collegiate Athletic Association and sports conference limited antitrust exemptions. The NCAA has pushed for its passage saying it would provide stability in college athletics.But labor groups have criticized the bill claiming it gives too much power to the NCAA without collective bargaining. The AFL-CIO’s sport council, which represents professional athletes, says the legislation would stifle progress that student athletes have made to grab a piece of the billions of dollars that flow through big-time college sports. “Normally, when employers collude to limit the rights and compensation of employees, our antitrust laws step in to protect the freedom of the marketplace, breaking up the powerful trust and allowing individuals to exercise some bargaining power,” the AFL-CIO said in a statement.Another complication is that the House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, has opposed the legislation and is expected to lobby against its passage during the final days of the current term. “Only chance is for it to be passed by both chambers and signed by President Trump before January. Otherwise they’re starting from square one against much more hostile terrain,” Sports analyst Seth Davis said on X.Congressional lawmakers will have bigger priorities in their final days of the year, including passing a continuing resolution to fund the government and avoid another shutdown. “The challenge was always the House where objections concerning antitrust protections, athlete reps, and school accountability remain unresolved,” Legal analyst Mitch Gilfillan said on X, noting that it is unlikely the outgoing Republican-led House will touch the measure before January.

Trump’s College Sports Reform Plan a Likely Victim of Midterm Election

Trump’s College Sports Reform Plan a Likely Victim of Midterm Election

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