[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3257 Introduced in House (IH)]
1st Session
H. R. 3257
To amend the Act of September 30, 1961, to limit the antitrust
exemption applicable to broadcasting agreements made by leagues of
professional sports, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 8, 2001
Mr. Blumenauer introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Act of September 30, 1961, to limit the antitrust
exemption applicable to broadcasting agreements made by leagues of
professional sports, 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 ``Give Fans a Chance Act of 2001''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO ANTITRUST EXEMPTION.
The Act of September 30, 1961 (Public Law 87-331; 15 U.S.C. 1291 et
seq.), is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 7. CONDITIONAL APPLICATION OF ACT.
``(a) Inapplicability.--This Act shall not apply to a league of
clubs of a professional sport for any period during which any member
club of such league is--
``(1) subject to such league's requirement, or to an
agreement made by 2 or more member clubs of such league, that
forbids any of such clubs to transfer (by sale or otherwise) an
ownership interest of any kind in such club to any governmental
entity or to members of the general public; or
``(2) not in compliance with subsection (b) or (c).
``(b) Notice of Proposed Change in Community; Opportunities To
Respond to Proposed Relocation or Elimination.--
``(1) In general.--A member club that proposes to relocate,
or a league that proposes to relocate or eliminate a member
club, out of a community in the home territory of the member
club shall furnish notice of such proposed relocation or
elimination not later than 180 days before the commencement of
the season in which the club is to play home games in the
proposed new location.
``(2) Persons entitled to receive notice.--The notice
required by paragraph (1) shall be furnished to all interested
persons.
``(3) Requirements.--The notice shall--
``(A) be in writing and delivered in person or by
certified mail;
``(B) be made available to the news media;
``(C) be published in 1 or more newspapers of
general circulation within the club's home community;
and
``(D) contain--
``(i) an identification of the proposed new
home community of such club if applicable;
``(ii) a summary of the reasons for the
proposed relocation or elimination based on the
criteria listed in subsection (c); and
``(iii) the date on which the proposed
relocation or elimination would become
effective.
``(4) Opportunity to offer to purchase.--
``(A) In general.--During the 180-day notice period
specified in paragraph (1), a local government,
stadium, arena authority, person, or any combination thereof, may
prepare and present a proposal to purchase the club to retain the club
in the home community.
``(B) Membership in league.--If a bid under
subparagraph (A) is successful, the league of which the
club is a member shall not prohibit the club's
membership in the league on the basis that the club is
owned in whole or in part by several persons or
entities, or by 1 or more local governments.
``(5) Opportunity to induce club to stay.--During the 180-
day notice period specified in paragraph (1), the club (and the
league of which the club is a member) shall give a local
government, stadium authority, person, or any combination
thereof, the opportunity to prepare and present a proposal to
induce the club to remain in its home community.
``(6) Response.--The response of the owner of the club to
any offer made under paragraph (4) or (5) shall--
``(A) be in writing and delivered in person or by
certified mail; and
``(B) state in detail the reasons for refusal of
any bona fide offer.
``(7) Determination by league.--
``(A) In general.--The league of which the club is
a member shall make a determination, before the
expiration of the 180-day notice period specified in
paragraph (1), with respect to the relocation or
elimination of the club out of its home community.
``(B) Hearings.--In making a determination under
this paragraph, the league shall conduct a hearing at
which interested persons are afforded an opportunity to
present oral or written testimony regarding the
proposed relocation or elimination of the club. The
league shall keep a record of all such proceedings.
``(C) Consideration of proposals.--The league shall
take into account any inducement proposal that is
offered under paragraph (5).
``(8) Considerations.--In determining whether to approve or
disapprove the relocation or elimination of the club, the
league shall take into consideration the criteria listed in
subsection (c).
``(c) Criteria for Relocation or Elimination Decisions.--
Notwithstanding any other law, before making a decision to approve or
disapprove the relocation or elimination of a club out of its home
community, the league of which such club is a member shall take into
consideration--
``(1) the extent to which fan loyalty to and support for
the club has been demonstrated during the club's operation in
such community;
``(2) the degree to which the club has engaged in good
faith negotiations with appropriate persons concerning terms
and conditions under which the club would continue to play home
games in such community or elsewhere within the club's home
territory;
``(3) the degree to which the ownership or management of
the club has contributed to any circumstances that might
demonstrate the need for the relocation or elimination;
``(4) the extent to which the club, 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 club played
its home games in the previous season, and the willingness of
the stadium, arena authority, or local government to remedy any
deficiencies in the facility;
``(6) whether the club has incurred net operating losses,
exclusive of depreciation and amortization, sufficient to
threaten the continued financial viability of the club;
``(7) whether any other club in the league is located in
the same home community;
``(8) whether the club proposes to relocate to a community
that is the home community of another member club of the
league;
``(9) whether the stadium authority, if public, is opposed
to the proposed relocation or elimination; and
``(10) whether there is a bona fide investor offering fair
market value for the club and seeking to retain the club in
such community.''.
SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act and the amendment made by this Act shall take effect on
the first day of the first month beginning more than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act.
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