[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2740 Introduced in House (IH)]
1st Session
H. R. 2740
To protect sports fans and communities throughout the Nation, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 7, 1995
Mr. Hoke (for himself, Mr. Blute, Mr. Cremeans, Mrs. Cubin, Mr.
Flanagan, Mr. Gutknecht, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. Hobson, Mr.
Jones, Mrs. Kelly, Mr. King, Mr. LaTourette, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Meehan,
Mrs. Meek of Florida, Ms. Molinari, Mr. Ney, Mr. Oxley, Mr. Peterson of
Minnesota, Mr. Portman, Ms. Pryce, Mr. Quinn, Mr. Scarborough, and Mr.
Traficant) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on
Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To protect sports fans and communities throughout the Nation, 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 ``Fan Freedom and Community Protection
Act of 1995''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The name of a professional sports team is always linked
to the name of the community in which it is located.
(2) Communities, sports fans, and taxpayers make a
substantial and valuable financial, psychological, and
emotional investment in their teams and their teams' names.
(3) Professional sports teams promote civic pride, and
generate jobs, revenues, and other local economic development.
(4) Professional sports teams remain in communities for
generations and represent much more than a business.
(5) Current law does not protect the rights of sports fans
nor the interests of communities when a professional sports
team decides to relocate.
(6) Professional sports team owners are positioned to
extract enormous benefits from communities, and they are taking
advantage of these opportunities.
(7) Professional sports teams and leagues have directly
benefited from Federal legislation, including the following:
(A) Public law 87-331 (15 U.S.C. 1291 et seq;
commonly referred to as the Sports Antitrust Broadcast
Act of 1961).
(B) Public law 89-800 (80 Stat. 1508; commonly
referred to as the Football Merger Act of 1966).
(C) Public law 93-107 (87 Stat. 350; relating to a
prohibition of local television blackouts of network
games which were sold out 72 hours in advance).
(D) Federal tax laws that allow depreciation of
player contracts, capital gains, carryover losses, and
the formation of Subchapter S corporations.
(8) The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in Los
Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission v. National Football
League (726 F.2d 1381 (9th cir. 1984); commonly referred to as
Raiders I), Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission v.
National Football League (791 F.2d. 1356 (9th cir. 1986);
commonly referred to as Raiders II), and National Basketball
Association v. SDC Basketball Club, Inc. (815 F.2d 562 (9th
cir. 1987); commonly referred to as Clippers) that a league has
the authority to prevent a professional sports team from
relocating from one community to another community.
SEC. 3. TEAM NAME.
(a) Conditions on Approval of Relocation.--In a case in which a
league approves the relocation of a professional sports team from a
community described in subsection (b)--
(1) the registered mark that is used to identify the
professional sports team becomes the property of the league;
(2) the league shall reserve the registered mark and any
portion of the registered mark for use only by the community
from which the team is relocating until the earlier of--
(A) the expiration of the registered mark; or
(B) the date on which the community informs the
league that a professional sports team will not be
using the registered mark; and
(3) the registered mark or any portion of the registered
mark may not be used by another professional sports team in the
same league.
(b) Communities Covered.--A community referred to in subsection (a)
is a community in which a professional sports team has been located for
a period of at least 10 years.
SEC. 4. NOTICE OF PROPOSED RELOCATION OF A PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TEAM.
(a) Requirement.--A professional sports team owner seeking to
relocate the team from one community to another shall provide notice of
the proposed relocation to the parties listed in subsection (b) not
later than 180 days before the commencement of the season in which the
professional sports team is to play in the new community.
(b) Parties.--The notice required under subsection (a) shall be
provided to--
(1) the local government for the community in which the
professional sports team's stadium or arena is located;
(2) the owner or operator of such stadium or arena; and
(3) each professional sports team that is a member of the
league for the professional sport concerned.
(c) Additional Requirements.--The notice required under subsection
(a) shall--
(1) be delivered in person or by certified mail;
(2) be published in one or more newspapers of general
circulation within the community in which the professional
sports team is located; and
(3) contain an identification of the proposed new location
for the professional sports team, a summary of the reasons for
moving the professional sports team based on the factors listed
in section 7, and the date on which the proposed change is
scheduled to become effective.
SEC. 5. REQUIREMENT TO MAKE EXPANSION TEAMS AVAILABLE TO COMMUNITIES
UPON THE FULFILLMENT OF CERTAIN CONDITIONS.
(a) League Requirement to Grant Franchise.--Not later than 12
months after the submission of the name of an investor under subsection
(b) to a league, the league shall grant to the investor a new expansion
professional sports team franchise from the league at a fee in an
amount no greater than an amount equal to 85 percent of the franchise
fee charged by the league for the last expansion professional sports
team franchise granted by the league.
(b) Three-Year Opportunity for Investment.--The requirement of
subsection (a) applies to a league in any case in which--
(1) the league approves, on or after January 1, 1993, the
relocation of a professional sports team from one community to
another;
(2) not later than three years after such relocation, the
community in which the team was previously located submits to
the league the name of an investor to be granted a new
professional sports team franchise in such community by the
league; and
(3) the investor demonstrates that he is financially able
to purchase and support a team by placing the amount described
under subsection (a), in addition to an amount equal to the
sale price of the last professional sports team sale approved
by the league, in an escrow account.
(c) Ten-Year Relocation Prohibition.--In the case of a grant of a
professional sports team franchise under subsection (a), the league may
approve a resale of the team, but may not approve a relocation of the
team during the ten-year period beginning on the date of the grant of
the expansion professional sports team franchise.
(d) Exception.--This section shall not apply in the case of a
community with a professional sports team if the team relocates within
60 miles of the community.
SEC. 6. LEAGUE RELOCATION AUTHORITY AND RELOCATION DETERMINATION
CRITERIA.
(a) League Authority.--It is not unlawful by reason of the
antitrust laws for a professional sports league to enforce rules or
agreements authorizing the membership of such league to decide whether
a professional sports team that is a member of the league may relocate
from one community to another.
(b) Determination Criteria.--In determining whether to approve or
disapprove the relocation of a professional sports team from one
community to another, a league shall make specific findings regarding--
(1) the extent to which fan loyalty to and support for the
team has been demonstrated during the team's tenure in the
community;
(2) the degree to which the team has engaged in good faith
negotiations with appropriate persons concerning terms and
conditions under which the team would continue to play its
games in the community;
(3) the degree to which the owners or managers of the team
have contributed to any circumstances which might demonstrate
the need for the relocation;
(4) the extent to which the team, directly or indirectly,
received public financial support by means of any publicly
financed playing facility, special tax treatment, or any other
form of public financial support;
(5) the adequacy of the stadium in which the team played
its home games in the previous season, and the willingness of
the stadium, arena authority, or the local government to remedy
any deficiencies in such facility;
(6) whether the team has incurred net operating losses,
exclusive of depreciation and amortization, sufficient to
threaten the continued financial viability of the team;
(7) whether any other team in the league is located in the
community in which the team is currently located;
(8) whether the team proposes to relocate to a community in
which no other team in the league is located;
(9) whether the stadium authority, if public, is not
opposed to such relocation; and
(10) whether there is a bona fide investor offering fair
market value for the professional sports team and will retain
the team in the current community.
SEC. 7. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Penalties for Failure to Comply.--A league that violates the
requirement of section 5(a) by failing to grant a new professional
sports team franchise--
(1) is liable to the community in which the team was
previously located for damages equal to three times the
purchase price of the team; and
(2) is subject to the suspension for one season of its
antitrust exemption for pooling the broadcasting rights to
games under Public Law 87-331 (15 U.S.C. 1291 et seq.).
(b) Enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission.--The provisions of
this Act shall be enforced by the Federal Trade Commission under the
Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.).
SEC. 8. INAPPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN MATTERS.
Nothing in this Act shall--
(1) alter, determine, or otherwise affect the applicability
or inapplicability of the antitrust laws, the labor laws, or
any other provision of law to the wages, hours, or other terms
and conditions of employment of players in any professional
sports league, to any employment matter regarding players in
any such league or to any collective bargaining rights and
privilege of any player union in any such league;
(2) alter or affect the applicability or inapplicability of
the antitrust laws or any applicable Federal or State law
regarding broadcasting or telecasting, including those
contained under section 1291 of title 15, United States Code,
to any agreement between any professional sports league or a
professional sports team that is a member of the league and any
person not affiliated with such a league for the broadcasting
or telecasting of the games of such league or members of the
league on any form of television;
(3) affect any contract, or provision of a contract,
relating to the use of a stadium or arena between a
professional sports team and the owner or operator of any
stadium or arena or any other person;
(4) exempt from the antitrust laws any agreement to fix the
prices of admission to sports contests;
(5) exempt from the antitrust laws any predatory practice
or other conduct with respect to competing sports leagues which
would otherwise be unlawful under the antitrust laws; or
(6) except as provided in this Act, alter, determine, or
otherwise affect the applicability or inapplicability of the
antitrust laws to any act, contract, agreement, rule, course of
conduct, or other activity by, between, or among persons
engaging in, conducting, or participating in professional
football, basketball, hockey, or baseball.
SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) Antitrust laws.--The term ``antitrust laws''--
(A) has the meaning giving it in subsection (a) of
the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)),
except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal
Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent such
section applies to unfair methods of competition; and
(B) includes any State law similar to the laws
referred to in subparagraph (A).
(2) Community.--The term ``community'' means a city,
county, parish, town, township, village, or any other general
function governmental unit established by State law.
(3) Investor.--The term ``investor'' means any person or
group of persons, including a community.
(4) League.--The terms ``league'' and ``professional sports
league'' mean an association composed of two or more
professional sports teams (which have been engaged in
competition in their sport for more than seven years) which has
adopted, accepted, or put into effect rules for the conduct of
professional sports teams which are members of that association
and for the regulation of contests and exhibitions in which
such teams regularly engage. The term includes--
(A) the National Football League;
(B) the National Hockey League;
(C) the National Basketball Association; and
(D) Major League Baseball.
(5) Located.--The term ``located'', with respect to a
professional sports team, means situated in the stadium or
arena in which the professional sports team plays its home
games.
(6) Professional Sports Team.--The term ``professional
sports team'' means any group of professional athletes
organized to play major league football, hockey, basketball, or
baseball.
SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act takes effect as of August 1, 1995.
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