[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 49 (Thursday, April 5, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3543-S3544]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. McCAIN (for himself, Mr. Brownback, and Mr. Jeffords):
  S. 718. A bill to direct the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology to establish a program to support research and training in 
methods of detecting the use of performance-enhancing drugs by 
athletes, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I am joined by my colleagues, Senators 
Brownback and Jeffords, today in introducing the Amateur Sports 
Integrity Act. This bill does two things: it amends the Ted Stevens 
Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to make it illegal to gamble on Olympic, 
college, and high school sports, and it authorizes appropriations for 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology to fund the 
detection and prevention of athletic performance-enhancing drugs.
  This bill implements a recommendation made by the congressionally 
created National Gambling Impact Study Commission. In the summary of 
its comprehensive report to Congress dated June 1999, the Commission 
noted that ``There is growing concern regarding increasing levels of 
sports wagering by adolescents in high school and by young adults on 
college campuses. A 1996 study sponsored by the National Collegiate 
Athletic Association found that of the over 200 student athletes 
surveyed in Division I basketball and football programs, 25.5 percent 
admitted betting on college sports events while in school.''
  In its report, the NGISC recommended that betting on collegiate and 
amateur athletic events that is currently legal be banned altogether. 
The bill that we are introducing today does just that. Just as the use 
of performance enhancing drugs threatens the integrity of amateur 
sports, so does gambling. Betting on amateur athletics invites public 
speculation as to their legitimacy and transforms student athletes into 
objects to be bet upon. Adding unwarranted pressure from corrupting 
influences to the pressures that these intensely competitive young 
people already feel is unacceptable. Congress must act to close the 
loophole that currently allows one state to serve as a national 
clearinghouse for betting on our youth.

[[Page S3544]]

  Let me make one thing clear: Although the Amateur Sports Integrity 
Act bans legal gambling on amateur athletics, I expect that it also 
will reduce a substantial amount of illegal gambling as well. The 
relationship between legal and illegal gambling was addressed by the 
NGISC, which observed that ``legal sports wagering--especially the 
publication in the media of Las Vegas and offshore-generated point 
spreads fuels a much larger amount of illegal sports wagering.'' I 
won't pretend, however, that closing the one-state loophole on legal 
gambling on amateur sports will put an end to illegal gambling on these 
athletes and competitions. For this reason, I say to my colleagues who 
are backing a bill that has the support of the gaming industry and that 
provides additional resources to combat illegal gambling--I agree with 
the intent of your legislation and appreciate your recognition that 
gambling on amateur athletics is a problem that must be addressed at 
the federal level. That bill, however, while perhaps acceptable as a 
complement, is not acceptable as an alternative to the Amateur Sports 
Integrity Act.
  Mr. President, in its report the NGISC recommended that all students 
should be warned of the dangers of gambling, from the time they are in 
elementary school to when they finish college. As the Commission 
concluded, the loophole that currently encourages gambling by, and on, 
these young people, should be closed. The bill we are introducing today 
codifies the NGISC recommendation, and further ensures the integrity of 
amateur sports by addressing athlete doping. I urge my colleagues to 
support its swift passage.
  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I am pleased to reintroduce today with 
Senator McCain, the Amateur Sports Integrity Act. This legislation 
combats performance enhancing drugs use by athletes, as well as the 
corruptive influence of legal gambling on high school, college, and 
amateur sports. I would like to thank my colleague for his continued 
interest in and leadership on this issue. I look forward to winning an 
up or down vote on this bill this Congress.
  The Amatuer Sports Integrity Act serves two purposes. First, it 
combats the use of performance enhancing drugs by athletes through the 
creation a new grant program to be administered by the National 
Institute of Science and Technology. This program will support research 
on the use of performance-enhancing drugs, and methods of detecting 
their use. Quite simply, Mr. President, we need to find out who's 
cheating and how they're doing it so we can disqualify their 
dishonorable efforts to compete. The Act will achieve this goal.
  Our legislation will also ban the continued and unseemly practice of 
legal wagering on high school, college, and amateur sports at the 
expense of the achievements of our nation's student and amateur 
athletes. This bill closes the loophole in the Professional and Amateur 
Sports Protection Act that allows legal sports betting in Nevada to 
negatively impact student athletics in other states.
  This bill is supported by the National Collegiate Athletic 
Association, which represents more than 1000 colleges and universities 
nationwide. In addition, numerous coaches among the college ranks 
support this effort, and I can think of no better advocate then the 
coaches who spend time day in and day out with the athletes and prized 
sporting institutions negatively affected by legal sports gambling.
  My continuing efforts on this issue are in direct response to the 
recommendation made by the National Gambling Impact Study Commission 
(NGISC), which in 1999 concluded a two-year study on the impact of 
legalized gambling in our country. The Commission's recommendation 
called for a complete ban on all legalized gambling on amateur sports.
  The Commission in its report recognized the potential harm of 
legalized gambling by stating that sports gambling ``can serve as a 
gateway behavior for adolescent gamblers, and can devastate individuals 
and careers.'' This Amateur Sports Integrity Act will serve notice that 
betting on college games or amateur athletics is not only inappropriate 
but can result in these significant social costs.
  Legislation addressing illegal gambling has been introduced in the 
House and Senate by members of the Nevada delegation. I would like to 
take a moment to commend my colleagues, Senators Reid and Ensign, for 
recognizing that the social consequences of gambling for the public 
must be addressed. I agree with the Nevada delegation that we should be 
vigilant in our efforts to increase our knowledge regarding illegal 
gambling activities, and find ways to help law enforcement combat such 
activities. As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee to which that 
bill has been referred, I look forward to working with the Nevada 
delegation to improve the bill and, ultimately, support its passage.
  However, we must also address the fact that legal gambling has a real 
and telling impact on high school, college, and amateur athletics and 
the public, and in fact facilitates illegal gambling activity. If there 
are any doubts, just ask Kevin Pendergast who orchestrated the 
basketball point-shaving scandal at Northwestern University. He had 
stated that he never would have been able to pull off his scheme if it 
weren't for the ability to lay a large amount of money on the Las Vegas 
sports books.
  The frequency of point shaving scandals over the last decade, and the 
tie-in to the Vegas sports books of the episodes at Northwestern and 
Arizona State is a clear indication that legal gambling on college 
sports stretches beyond Nevada, impacting the integrity of other 
state's sporting events. The now familiar opposition to this bill on 
the theory of states rights simply does not hold water, and I 
categorically reject the notion that Kansas college athletics should be 
jeopardized so the casinos in Vegas can rake in some additional 
gambling revenues.
  Mr. President, I encourage my colleagues to cosponsor the Amateur 
Sports Integrity Act and I look forward to a vote before the full 
Senate.
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