[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 955 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 955
To establish due process requirements for the investigation of
intercollegiate athletics, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 11 (legislative day, March 10), 2025
Mrs. Blackburn (for herself and Mr. Booker) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish due process requirements for the investigation of
intercollegiate athletics, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``NCAA Accountability Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. DUE PROCESS REQUIREMENTS.
(a) In General.--Each covered athletic association shall establish
and administer due process requirements for the investigation of any
member institution, student athlete enrolled in such member
institution, or other individual for any alleged infraction of the
covered athletic association's bylaws or failure to meet the conditions
and obligations of membership if the matter cannot be resolved without
a formal investigation, consistent with the following:
(1) If the covered athletic association initiates an
investigation into a member institution, the covered athletic
association shall provide written notice to the member
institution detailing the nature of the inquiry by not later
than 60 days after the covered athletic association receives
information indicating that a bylaw violation may have
occurred, and that the covered athletic association has
determined that an investigation is warranted. The notice shall
include, to the extent such information is available, the
following:
(A) Each program under investigation.
(B) All persons under investigation.
(C) The specific alleged violations under
investigation.
(D) Each date or time period an alleged violation
may have occurred.
(E) The rights and resources available to the
accused.
(2) The notice under paragraph (1)(C) shall be limited to
possible violations occurring not earlier than 2 years before
the date the notice is provided to the member institution. The
covered athletic association shall thereafter promptly notify
the member institution of any other relevant information
discovered in the course of the investigation.
(3) Prior to commencing any enforcement proceeding, the
covered athletic association shall provide the member
institution with a notice of allegations not later than 8
months after the notice of inquiry is received under paragraph
(1), which shall include the following:
(A) Details about each allegation.
(B) The potential penalties for each allegation.
(C) The information and factors the covered
athletic association considered in its determination to
file charges.
(D) The rights and resources available to the
member institution and involved individuals.
(4) Not earlier than 60 days after the notice of
allegations is received, there shall be a hearing before the
covered athletic association's infractions committee or body
with authorization to hear cases and prescribe punishments to
member institutions which shall conform to the following
requirements:
(A) The hearing shall commence not later than 1
year after the notice is provided under paragraph (1).
(B) No information from confidential sources may be
offered into evidence or form the basis for any
decision.
(5) In the event that there is any dispute regarding the
covered athletic association's punishment of a member
institution, the member institution may compel entry into
arbitration conducted in accordance with the standard
commercial arbitration rules of an established major national
provider of arbitration and mediation services based in the
United States, which will provide an independent review and
binding decision. The arbitration shall be conducted by a
three-person panel. The covered athletic association and member
institution shall each appoint one arbitrator of their
respective choosing. The third arbitrator shall be appointed in
agreement by the two arbitrators appointed by each party.
(6) The covered athletic association shall conduct its
enforcement proceedings and investigations in a fair and
consistent manner, and the penalties issued against member
institutions for bylaw infractions shall be equitable with
respect to severity of the infraction and the member
institution's history of infractions.
(7) The covered athletic association shall not disclose
information relating to an ongoing investigation into a member
institution until formal charges are filed in the notice of
allegations submitted under paragraph (3). The member
institution shall have discretionary authority to disclose any
information relating to an ongoing investigation, and no
information relating to an ongoing investigation shall be
subject to any disclosure requirement under State law.
(b) Report.--A covered athletic association shall submit an annual
report to the Attorney General summarizing its enforcement proceedings,
investigations, and issuance of punishments to member organizations
under this Act over the preceding year. A covered athletic association
shall submit an annual report to each State Attorney General (and the
Attorney General for the District of Columbia) summarizing its
enforcement proceedings, investigations, and issuance of punishments to
member institutions headquartered in the State.
SEC. 3. LIMITATION.
The privileges of membership of any member institution in the
covered athletic association may not be impaired as a consequence of
any rights granted under this Act.
SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Procedures.--The Attorney General shall establish procedures--
(1) for individuals and entities to file written, signed
complaints respecting potential violations of this Act by a
covered athletic association or any person acting as an agent
thereof;
(2) for the investigation of those complaints which have a
substantial probability of validity;
(3) for the investigation of such other violations of this
Act as the Attorney General determines to be appropriate; and
(4) for the evaluation of a covered athletic association's
annual report to determine compliance with this Act.
(b) Investigations and Hearings.--In conducting investigations and
hearings pursuant to this section, the following shall apply:
(1) Any hearing so requested shall be conducted before an
administrative law judge of the Department of Justice
determined by the Attorney General. The hearing shall be
conducted in accordance with the requirements of section 554 of
title 5, United States Code. The hearing shall be held at the
nearest practicable place to the place where the person or
covered athletic association resides or of the place where the
alleged violation occurred. If no hearing is so requested, the
Attorney General's imposition of the order shall constitute a
final and unappealable order.
(2) Officers and employees of the Department of Justice
(including the administrative law judges referred to in
paragraph (1)) shall have reasonable access to examine evidence
of any person or covered athletic association being
investigated.
(3) If the administrative law judge determines, upon the
preponderance of the evidence received, that a person or
covered athletic association named in the complaint has
violated the statute, the administrative law judge shall state
his findings of fact and issue and cause to be served on such
person or covered athletic association an order as follows:
(A) The administrative law judge shall order the
person or covered athletic association to cease and
desist from such violations and to pay a civil penalty
in an amount of not less than $10,000 and not more than
$15,000,000.
(B) In determining the amount of the penalty, due
consideration shall be given to the good faith of the
covered athletic association or person, the seriousness
of the violation, and the history of previous
violations.
(C) The administrative law judge may order the
permanent removal of any member of the covered athletic
association's governing body in the case of a
violation.
(4) The Attorney General may, not earlier than 30 days
after providing notice thereof to the person or covered
athletic association, commence a hearing before an
administrative law judge of the Department of Justice for any
alleged violation of this Act by that person or covered
athletic association. The administrative law judge may impose a
civil penalty for any violation determined to have occurred.
(5) Administrative law judges may, if necessary, compel by
subpoena the attendance of witnesses and the production of
evidence at any designated place or hearing case of contumacy
or refusal to obey a subpoena lawfully issued under this
paragraph and upon application of the Attorney General, an
appropriate district court of the United States may issue an
order requiring compliance with such subpoena and any failure
to obey such order may be punished by such court as a contempt
thereof.
(6) The decision and order of an administrative law judge
shall become the final agency decision and order of the
Attorney General unless, within 30 days after the
administrative law judge issues such order, the Attorney
General modifies or vacates the decision and order, in which
case the decision and order of the Attorney General shall
become a final order under this subsection.
(7) A person or covered athletic association adversely
affected by a final order (including an order for assessment of
a civil penalty) under this section may, within 45 days after
the date the final order is issued, file a petition in the
Court of Appeals for the appropriate circuit for review of the
order.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Covered athletic association.--The term ``covered
athletic association'' means an interstate athletic
association, conference, or other organization with authority
over intercollegiate athletics or that administers
intercollegiate athletics, with at least 900 member
institutions.
(2) Member institution.--The term ``member institution''
means an institution of higher education that maintains at
least one intercollegiate athletic program that is a member of
a covered athletic association.
(3) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term ``college'' or ``university'' in section 1404 of the
National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy
Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3103).
SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.
A covered athletic association shall carry out the requirements of
this Act by not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this
Act.
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