WASHINGTON, D.C.–NCAA president Mark Emmert believes that some state laws and federal proposals to govern college athlete compensation would fundamentally alter intercollegiate athletics and make it “nearly unrecognizable,” he says in a written testimonial submitted to Congress.
Emmert’s 3,100-word testimony offers a window into his appearance later Wednesday in front of a panel of U.S. senators in what will be the fifth hearing on Capitol Hill over how NCAA athletes should earn money from their name, image and likeness (NIL).
According to his testimony, Emmert is expected to again encourage lawmakers to create a federal bill to universally govern NIL while also expressing concern over a hodgepodge of differing state NIL laws that, he writes, “threaten the NCAA’s ability to provide uniform NIL opportunities as well as fair, national competition.