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EXCLUSIVE: Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., plan to go to bat for college athletes to help secure their futures by investing their name, image and likeness (NIL) earnings.
Blackburn and Cantwell introduced the Helping Undergraduate Students Thrive with Long-Term Earnings (HUSTLE) Act, according to a release obtained by Fox News Digital. The senators said college athletes would get the opportunity to put money into “tax-advantaged investment accounts for student athletes, require trustees to provide financial education, and establish regulations to prevent abuse.”
The senators vowed that the HUSTLE Act would also help college athletes improve their financial literacy and better navigate the Wild West of NIL.
“College athletes are now earning billions of dollars from their name, image, and likeness—and rightly so. We must empower these students to safeguard their financial future and protect themselves against rogue agents,” Blackburn said in a statement. “The HUSTLE Act would allow college athletes to invest their earnings in a tax-advantaged account that grows over time, strengthen financial education, and create safeguards to prevent exploitation by dishonest agents.”
Cantwell hoped that college athletes would no longer be taken advantage of by “unscrupulous agents.”
“This bill focuses in on the financial security and safety of college athletes who – finally – are earning compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL),” Cantwell added. “Many of these athletes will be in a unique situation where they will earn NIL income during a relatively brief period of their careers. Our bill will set up a specific NIL Account where they can set aside some of that income and build long-term savings.
“The bill also will protect athletes and their NIL earnings against financial exploitation by unscrupulous agents. Since athletes have been able to earn NIL, some have been victimized by agents who have charged shockingly high commissions or have tried to take ownership of the athlete’s intellectual property rights. Our bill will rein in these abuses and require agents to register with a state.”
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Under the HUSTLE Act, college athletes will be able to use NIL earnings up to the annual gift-tax exclusion amount to an NIL investment account, allowing their funds to grow tax-free. The bill would allow up to $35,000 in unused NIL account funds to be rolled over into an IRA or retirement account once the athlete has been out of college athletics for at least a year.
Trustees would be required to provide financial education to ensure athletes know how to manage their money. The HUSTLE Act would also direct the Treasury Department to draw up regulations to prevent abuse and exploitation, report and track contribution limits and define other expenses.
The HUSTLE Act would also update the Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act. Athlete agents would have to register with a state before being able to represent athletes in NIL deals. Agent fees would be capped at 5% and certify their registration to whichever athletic association that governs the athlete’s sport.
Deceptive practices would be banned, and national governing bodies would be required to put together an online registry of registered and certified athlete agents to increase transparency for athletes and their families.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey was among those who endorsed the HUSTLE Act.
“The Southeastern Conference is grateful for the continued engagement of lawmakers in addressing the evolving needs of student-athletes,” he said in a statement. “The HUSTLE Act represents a constructive approach by establishing tax-advantaged NIL investment accounts that encourage financial education, long-term savings, and responsible management of earnings.
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“We appreciate Congress’s sustained bipartisan commitment to developing national, consistent standards that support student-athletes and enhance their opportunities in this rapidly changing environment.”
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