[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 7, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E8]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          BASEBALL FANS AND COMMUNITIES PROTECTION ACT OF 1997

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, January 7, 1997

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the ``Baseball Fans 
and Communities Protection Act of 1997.'' It is time that Congress 
finally steps up to the plate and ends baseball's antitrust exemption 
which was at the root of the debilitating strike of 1994-95.
  Professional baseball is the only industry in the United States that 
is exempt from the antitrust laws without being subject to alternative 
regulatory supervision. This circumstance resulted from an erroneous 
1922 Supreme Court decision holding that baseball did not involve 
``interstate commerce'' and was therefore beyond the reach of the 
antitrust laws. Congress has failed to overturn this decision despite 
subsequent court decisions holding that the other professional sports 
were fully subject to the antitrust laws.
  There may have been a time when baseball's unique treatment was a 
source of pride and distinction for the many loyal fans who loved our 
national pastime. But with baseball suffering more work stoppages over 
the last 25 years than all of the other professional sports combined--
including the 1994-95 strike which ended the possibility of a World 
Series for the first time in 90 years and deprived our cities of 
thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in tax revenues--we can no 
longer afford to treat professional baseball in a manner enjoyed by no 
other professional sport.
  The bill I am introducing today is based on a legislation approved by 
the Senate Judiciary Committee last Congress and is similar to 
legislation adopted by the House Judiciary Committee during the 103d 
Congress partially repealing the antitrust exemption. Because concerns 
have previously been raised that by repealing the antitrust exemption 
we could somehow be disrupting the operation of the minor leagues, or 
professional baseball's ability to limit franchise relocation or 
jointly negotiate network broadcasting arrangements, the legislation 
carefully eliminates these matters from the scope of the new antitrust 
coverage.
  After advocating repeal of the exemption for many years, I believe 
the time is finally ripe for enactment of this legislation. In the past 
some legislators had objected to legislating in this area because of 
their hesitancy to take any action which could impact the ongoing labor 
dispute. But because the owners and players have recently agreed to 
enter into a new collective bargaining agreement, this objection no 
longer exists.
  In addition, the baseball owners have agreed to work with the players 
to seek a partial repeal of the antitrust exemption as part of their 
new labor accord. Their memorandum of understanding provides, ``[t]he 
clubs and the [Major League Baseball Players Association] will jointly 
request and cooperate in lobbying the Congress to pass a law clarifying 
that Major League baseball players are covered under the antitrust laws 
(i.e., that major league players will have the same rights under the 
antitrust laws as do other professional athletes, e.g., football and 
basketball players), along with a provision which makes it clear that 
passage of the bill does not change the application of the antitrust 
laws in any other context or with respect to any other person or 
entity.''
  I have asked that the bill be introduced as H.R. 21, in honor of the 
courageous center fielder, Curt Flood. Mr. Flood, one of the greatest 
players of his time, risked his career when he challenged baseball's 
reserve clause after he was traded from the St. Louis Cardinals to the 
Philadelphia Phillies. Although the Supreme Court rejected Flood's 
challenge in 1972, we all owe a debt of gratitude for his willingness 
to challenge the baseball oligarchy.
  Professional baseball is now a more than $2 billion annual business 
and the time has long since passed when it could be contended that 
baseball did not constitute ``interstate commerce.'' There is 
bipartisan support in both the House and Senate for taking action on 
this issue, and I look forward to Congress finally repealing the 
longstanding anomaly of baseball's antitrust exemption.

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