SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Lawmakers have sent the governor a bill to allow athletes at California colleges to hire agents and sign endorsement deals.

It sets up a confrontation with the NCAA that could jeopardize the athletic futures of powerhouse programs like USC, UCLA and Stanford.

The bill would allow athletes at California schools to hire agents and be paid for the use of their name, image or likeness. It would stop universities and the NCAA from banning athletes that take the money.

The Senate passed the bill 39-0 on Wednesday, a few days after it got an endorsement from NBA superstar LeBron James.

It now goes to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has not said whether he'll sign it.

The NCAA Board of Governors sent a letter Wednesday to Newsom saying the bill would eventually stop California colleges from participating in NCAA competitions.

In the six-paragraph letter to Newsom, the board said the bill would give California schools an unfair recruiting advantage. As a result, the letter says, the NCAA would declare those schools ineligible for its events.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/sports/california-sets-clash-ncaa-passing-bill-allowing-college-athletes-get-n1052886 

College athletics is a billion dollar industry and I’ve been a proponent of allowing some sort of legal compensation for athletes for a very long time. It seems that some other states might follow California’s lead with this one and try to pass similar legislation.

Andrew Yang touched on this subject in his presidential platform, and has said recently that he would attempt to pass something like this on a national level if elected president.

What do you think? Should players be allowed to make money from their abilities, or would this lead to the downfall of college athletics?

I feel like too much money is made of those poor college kids for them to not get a dime. It's ridiculous. I'm not sayin they should be millionaires but they should get something. Too much money at that age can be a bad thing.

they need to be able to make money, but not like this... this will be disastrous and, if it gains traction, will be the end of college sports as we know it...

the much easier way to deal with this would've been to say, anytime the program makes any kind of financial gain from promotion of the student athletes, the athletes are to be given X% of that money...

once these kids start getting agents and negotiating contracts and sponsors, they won't need to go to school anymore, nor will they have the time... they've got a job... "College football" will quickly become "college-age football"...

buncha BS, they can't bar CA......oooops....I read NAACP....never mind...

Agreed

They spend a lot of time preparing. See what he average non-athlete student makes in their part time jobs and give them a stipend. Not a piece of the action.

You mean should players be able to get compensation OVER AND ABOVE the $200,000 "education" that allows them to showcase their skills to become millionaire pros?


If these schools want to participate in NCAA sports, they need to follow NCAA rules.

Petition the NCAA. Don't drag the courts into this.

high schools are next...

Problem is, once they start getting paid then their tax exemption for their scholarships.....it’s a no win.

IMO the NCAA should quit promoting and selling individual jerseys or have a profit sharing deal for when they graduate. There’s got to be a decent answer that doesn’t interfere more than it should.

Good morning

Let me be the first to congratulate California in solving all of their problems (i.e. homelessness, poverty, illegal emigrates, etc., etc., etc.) so that they could devote tax payer dollars to tackle this problem that effects the state as a whole. 🌫 🍺

I’m not taking a position on this because I’m torn and haven’t decided where I fall.

I’m trying to reconcile things with smaller government, less regulation, more competition, personal freedoms and rights, etc.

Never stopped me.

freak... 😟

It appears that CA signed this bill yesterday. The new law takes effect in 2023 and will give CA universities a HUGE advantage in recruiting over the rest of the country.

Will we see a domino effect with other states passing similar legislation that will ultimately force the NCAA to change the rules, or will some of the nations top schools suddenly be banned from athletic competition with the NCAA? Are there any legal avenues the NCAA could take to fight back?

This could get interesting.

gotta do something to stop the SEC from poaching most of the top tier athletes from CA...

I don't care for the NCAA.
But I hope they ban the schools that allow this.

Why Tail? I am curious why you think that is the correct option.

The rule needs to be uniform nationwide, or recruiting will be insane. Come to think of it, this feels like the cusp of recruiting becoming a bidding war. Great. Will be looking forward to the Clemson-Alabama National Championship that is already pretty much going to happen most years anyway.

BTW, I saw that there is another poll ranking football teams now. There's the AP, and I'm not sure if the coaches' poll or UPI is still around, but an Amway poll? Saw that in the Seattle Times. So what, you recruit ten lower-ranked teams, and you move up a spot, but you have 100 years' worth of paper towels to store?

Gee billy Bob we can get scholarships and smoke weed and get paid to do it in CA!!!