[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 361 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.361

                       One Hundred Eighth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
           the twentieth day of January, two thousand and four


                                 An Act


 
To designate certain conduct by sports agents relating to the signing of 
    contracts with student athletes as unfair and deceptive acts or 
       practices to be regulated by the Federal Trade Commission.

    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 ``Sports Agent Responsibility and 
Trust Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act, the following definitions apply:
        (1) Agency contract.--The term ``agency contract'' means an 
    oral or written agreement in which a student athlete authorizes a 
    person to negotiate or solicit on behalf of the student athlete a 
    professional sports contract or an endorsement contract.
        (2) Athlete agent.--The term ``athlete agent'' means an 
    individual who enters into an agency contract with a student 
    athlete, or directly or indirectly recruits or solicits a student 
    athlete to enter into an agency contract, and does not include a 
    spouse, parent, sibling, grandparent, or guardian of such student 
    athlete, any legal counsel for purposes other than that of 
    representative agency, or an individual acting solely on behalf of 
    a professional sports team or professional sports organization.
        (3) Athletic director.--The term ``athletic director'' means an 
    individual responsible for administering the athletic program of an 
    educational institution or, in the case that such program is 
    administered separately, the athletic program for male students or 
    the athletic program for female students, as appropriate.
        (4) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
    Trade Commission.
        (5) Endorsement contract.--The term ``endorsement contract'' 
    means an agreement under which a student athlete is employed or 
    receives consideration for the use by the other party of that 
    individual's person, name, image, or likeness in the promotion of 
    any product, service, or event.
        (6) Intercollegiate sport.--The term ``intercollegiate sport'' 
    means a sport played at the collegiate level for which eligibility 
    requirements for participation by a student athlete are established 
    by a national association for the promotion or regulation of 
    college athletics.
        (7) Professional sports contract.--The term ``professional 
    sports contract'' means an agreement under which an individual is 
    employed, or agrees to render services, as a player on a 
    professional sports team, with a professional sports organization, 
    or as a professional athlete.
        (8) State.--The term ``State'' includes a State of the United 
    States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States 
    Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to 
    the jurisdiction of the United States.
        (9) Student athlete.--The term ``student athlete'' means an 
    individual who engages in, is eligible to engage in, or may be 
    eligible in the future to engage in, any intercollegiate sport. An 
    individual who is permanently ineligible to participate in a 
    particular intercollegiate sport is not a student athlete for 
    purposes of that sport.

SEC. 3. REGULATION OF UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE ACTS AND PRACTICES IN 
              CONNECTION WITH THE CONTACT BETWEEN AN ATHLETE AGENT AND 
              A STUDENT ATHLETE.

    (a) Conduct Prohibited.--It is unlawful for an athlete agent to--
        (1) directly or indirectly recruit or solicit a student athlete 
    to enter into an agency contract, by--
            (A) giving any false or misleading information or making a 
        false promise or representation; or
            (B) providing anything of value to a student athlete or 
        anyone associated with the student athlete before the student 
        athlete enters into an agency contract, including any 
        consideration in the form of a loan, or acting in the capacity 
        of a guarantor or co-guarantor for any debt;
        (2) enter into an agency contract with a student athlete 
    without providing the student athlete with the disclosure document 
    described in subsection (b); or
        (3) predate or postdate an agency contract.
    (b) Required Disclosure by Athlete Agents to Student Athletes.--
        (1) In general.--In conjunction with the entering into of an 
    agency contract, an athlete agent shall provide to the student 
    athlete, or, if the student athlete is under the age of 18, to such 
    student athlete's parent or legal guardian, a disclosure document 
    that meets the requirements of this subsection. Such disclosure 
    document is separate from and in addition to any disclosure which 
    may be required under State law.
        (2) Signature of student athlete.--The disclosure document must 
    be signed by the student athlete, or, if the student athlete is 
    under the age of 18, by such student athlete's parent or legal 
    guardian, prior to entering into the agency contract.
        (3) Required language.--The disclosure document must contain, 
    in close proximity to the signature of the student athlete, or, if 
    the student athlete is under the age of 18, the signature of such 
    student athlete's parent or legal guardian, a conspicuous notice in 
    boldface type stating: ``Warning to Student Athlete: If you agree 
    orally or in writing to be represented by an agent now or in the 
    future you may lose your eligibility to compete as a student 
    athlete in your sport. Within 72 hours after entering into this 
    contract or before the next athletic event in which you are 
    eligible to participate, whichever occurs first, both you and the 
    agent by whom you are agreeing to be represented must notify the 
    athletic director of the educational institution at which you are 
    enrolled, or other individual responsible for athletic programs at 
    such educational institution, that you have entered into an agency 
    contract.''.

SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Unfair or Deceptive Act or Practice.--A violation of this Act 
shall be treated as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or 
deceptive act or practice prescribed under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the 
Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)).
    (b) Actions by the Commission.--The Commission shall enforce this 
Act in the same manner, by the same means, and with the same 
jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable terms and 
provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) 
were incorporated into and made a part of this Act.

SEC. 5. ACTIONS BY STATES.

    (a) In General.--
        (1) Civil actions.--In any case in which the attorney general 
    of a State has reason to believe that an interest of the residents 
    of that State has been or is threatened or adversely affected by 
    the engagement of any athlete agent in a practice that violates 
    section 3 of this Act, the State may bring a civil action on behalf 
    of the residents of the State in a district court of the United 
    States of appropriate jurisdiction to--
            (A) enjoin that practice;
            (B) enforce compliance with this Act; or
            (C) obtain damage, restitution, or other compensation on 
        behalf of residents of the State.
        (2) Notice.--
            (A) In general.--Before filing an action under paragraph 
        (1), the attorney general of the State involved shall provide 
        to the Commission--
                (i) written notice of that action; and
                (ii) a copy of the complaint for that action.
            (B) Exemption.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply with 
        respect to the filing of an action by an attorney general of a 
        State under this subsection, if the attorney general determines 
        that it is not feasible to provide the notice described in that 
        subparagraph before filing of the action. In such case, the 
        attorney general of a State shall provide notice and a copy of 
        the complaint to the Commission at the same time as the 
        attorney general files the action.
    (b) Intervention.--
        (1) In general.--On receiving notice under subsection (a)(2), 
    the Commission shall have the right to intervene in the action that 
    is the subject of the notice.
        (2) Effect of intervention.--If the Commission intervenes in an 
    action under subsection (a), it shall have the right--
            (A) to be heard with respect to any matter that arises in 
        that action; and
            (B) to file a petition for appeal.
    (c) Construction.--For purposes of bringing any civil action under 
subsection (a), nothing in this title shall be construed to prevent an 
attorney general of a State from exercising the powers conferred on the 
attorney general by the laws of that State to--
        (1) conduct investigations;
        (2) administer oaths or affirmations; or
        (3) compel the attendance of witnesses or the production of 
    documentary and other evidence.
    (d) Actions by the Commission.--In any case in which an action is 
instituted by or on behalf of the Commission for a violation of section 
3, no State may, during the pendency of that action, institute an 
action under subsection (a) against any defendant named in the 
complaint in that action.
    (e) Venue.--Any action brought under subsection (a) may be brought 
in the district court of the United States that meets applicable 
requirements relating to venue under section 1391 of title 28, United 
States Code.
    (f) Service of Process.--In an action brought under subsection (a), 
process may be served in any district in which the defendant--
        (1) is an inhabitant; or
        (2) may be found.

SEC. 6. PROTECTION OF EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION.

    (a) Notice Required.--Within 72 hours after entering into an agency 
contract or before the next athletic event in which the student athlete 
may participate, whichever occurs first, the athlete agent and the 
student athlete shall each inform the athletic director of the 
educational institution at which the student athlete is enrolled, or 
other individual responsible for athletic programs at such educational 
institution, that the student athlete has entered into an agency 
contract, and the athlete agent shall provide the athletic director 
with notice in writing of such a contract.
    (b) Civil Remedy.--
        (1) In general.--An educational institution has a right of 
    action against an athlete agent for damages caused by a violation 
    of this Act.
        (2) Damages.--Damages of an educational institution may include 
    and are limited to actual losses and expenses incurred because, as 
    a result of the conduct of the athlete agent, the educational 
    institution was injured by a violation of this Act or was 
    penalized, disqualified, or suspended from participation in 
    athletics by a national association for the promotion and 
    regulation of athletics, by an athletic conference, or by 
    reasonable self-imposed disciplinary action taken to mitigate 
    actions likely to be imposed by such an association or conference.
        (3) Costs and attorneys fees.--In an action taken under this 
    section, the court may award to the prevailing party costs and 
    reasonable attorneys fees.
        (4) Effect on other rights, remedies and defenses.--This 
    section does not restrict the rights, remedies, or defenses of any 
    person under law or equity.

SEC. 7. LIMITATION.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit an individual 
from seeking any remedies available under existing Federal or State law 
or equity.

SEC. 8. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that States should enact the Uniform 
Athlete Agents Act of 2000 drafted by the National Conference of 
Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, to protect student athletes and 
the integrity of amateur sports from unscrupulous sports agents. In 
particular, it is the sense of Congress that States should enact the 
provisions relating to the registration of sports agents, the required 
form of contract, the right of the student athlete to cancel an agency 
contract, the disclosure requirements relating to record maintenance, 
reporting, renewal, notice, warning, and security, and the provisions 
for reciprocity among the States.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.