The Division I Legislative Council will cast its first official votes on legislation in the 2008-09 cycle at its January 14-15 meeting at the NCAA Convention in Washington, D.C.

Though the group reviewed each piece of legislation extensively in October – and took a preliminary position on some measures – the January meeting is the first opportunity for voting on the proposals.

Among some of the key proposals under consideration are:

•         2008-13-A and 2008-13-B – permitting student-athlete in individual sports to accept prize money based on performance in an open athletics event up to actual and necessary expenses. The two proposals differ on when the competition may occur – 2008-13-A allows the competition during all vacation periods, while the competing proposal limits the competition to summer vacation only.

•         2008-30-A and B – putting prohibitions on the employment of coaches and individuals involved with prospective student-athletes in men’s basketball. 2008-30-B, supported by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, would prohibit the hiring of such individuals as a speaker or presenter at any athletically related events or activities. The initial proposal prohibits only the hiring of such individuals as a speaker at camps or clinics.

•         2008-76 – expanding for purposes of the tryout rule the definition of “prospective student-athlete” to include individuals who have begun classes for the seventh grade.

•         2008-79 – shortening the period during which men’s basketball student-athletes can “test the waters” for the professional draft.

•         2008-32-A, 2008-32-B, 2008-35-A and 2008-35-B – allowing student-athletes to use nontraditional coursework to fulfill progress-toward-degree or full-time enrollment requirements. The alternate proposals include a credit-hour maximum.

•         2008-41, 2008-46 and 2008-48 – altering the baseball season through either number of games or weeks in the season.

The Legislative Council will vote on all the proposals in the cycle, with the choices to defeat the legislation, to send it to the Division I Board of Directors for approval or to seek further input from the membership. The Board of Directors can accept the Council’s decision on the proposals or make a different decision.

This will be the first Convention since the Division I governance structure was reorganized last fall. Due in part to that transition and the various cabinets’ reluctance to sponsor legislation under the old structure, the 2008-09 legislative agenda is relatively light.