National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

May 19, 1997

Proposed Amateur Sports Act revisions prompt comments

The NCAA has responded to a number of recommendations for amending the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 that were voiced during a recent hearing held by the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee.

The Association responded to recommendations ranging from a proposed change in the name of the Amateur Sports Act to a recommendation that an entity such as the NCAA be prohibited from excluding an athlete from its programs on the basis of that athlete's participation in the Olympics or in programs sponsored by a national governing body (NGB).

Association views on the recommendations were included in a letter signed by NCAA Executive Director Cedric W. Dempsey and addressed to two Senate Commerce Committee members: Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and committee chair John McCain, R-Arizona. The letter, which was delivered May 6 to Stevens' staff, responded to six specific recommendations presented by various organizations during an April 21 hearing of the Senate committee in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The letter primarily addresses a recommendation by the United States Olympic Committee's Athletes' Advisory Council, which asked the Senate committee for the revision that would ban the exclusion of Olympic and other athletes from programs of the NCAA and other organizations.

In the letter, Dempsey states that the NCAA "will oppose any such amendment as inconsistent with the terms and intent" of a provision of the Amateur Sports Act that gives the Association and other organizations exclusive jurisdiction over their own competition.

The provision, Section 206 of the 19-year-old Amateur Sports Act, states that "any amateur sports organization which conducts amateur athletic competition, participation in which is restricted to a specific class of amateur athletes (such as...college students....), shall have exclusive jurisdiction over such competition."

Dempsey also noted "good-faith discussions" between the NCAA and USOC during the past seven years that have resulted in approximately 40 rule changes that are designed to assist the USOC and NGBs in their respective missions.

He said the objective of those discussions has been to aid the Olympic movement without interfering with the basic integrity of intercollegiate athletics programs.

"We expect to continue the dialogue that resulted in these refinements, but we will oppose any sweeping amendment, such as the Athletes' Advisory Council proposal, that ignores the letter and intent of Section 206," the letter states.

NCAA representatives agreed during the May 6 meeting with Stevens' staff to provide further information on the Association's rules and restrictions relating to international competition.

Other proposals

Dempsey's letter also comments on various other proposals made during the Colorado Springs hearing, which was the third in a series of four hearings to consider revisions in the Amateur Sports Act.

In general, the letter states that "these hearings on the act really suggest that there is little or no need -- let alone a compelling need -- to amend the act in any substantive way.

"At the very least," the letter continues, "we respectfully suggest that the Congress should proceed with 'healthy skepticism.' "

The letter specifically addresses these proposals:

  • A proposal to change the name of the act by eliminating the word "amateur," in acknowledgement of professional athletes' eligibility for participation in various Olympic sports. The NCAA took no position on this proposal other than to note that deletion of the term "amateur" from specific areas of the act may create problems with "carefully drawn definitions" appearing in the legislation.

  • USOC President William J. Hybl requested clarification of the Olympic Committee's responsibility to send a complete team to the Olympic and Pan American Games, as that requirement relates to a section of the act requiring the USOC to obtain "the most competent representation possible in each competition." Hybl noted that the large, costly delegations that attend those Games include athletes who have no chance of winning a medal but whose participation constitutes developmental activity. In response, the NCAA urges that careful thought be given to any clarification of the act that would impair the use of those events as developmental activities.

  • The Association, noting continuing requests for Congressional assistance with USOC funding, indicated that Congressional or public oversight of that organization appears to remain appropriate.

  • USOC President Hybl recommended that the act be amended to make the organization immune from lawsuits in cases related to athletes' rights. Hybl also said any such revision should provide for an appropriate "process" for athletes. Dempsey, noting the Association's own experience with defending itself against such claims, acknowledged that such lawsuits can be "unpleasant and expensive" but still are preferable to "creating a system by which an amateur sports organization is insulated entirely from accountability in the courts...."

    Stevens's staff has indicated that the Commerce Committee probably will produce a draft bill containing any proposed revisions of the Amateur Sports Act within the next few weeks.

    It probably then will schedule a "town meeting" discussion of the bill that will include as participants all interested parties, including the NCAA.

    Stevens has said that he hopes to obtain a consensus among interested parties before presenting any bill to the Senate for a vote.