PROTECT Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 5693 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 5693 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit certain private- equity and sovereign wealth fund agreements involving intercollegiate athletics. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 6, 2025 Mr. Baumgartner introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit certain private- equity and sovereign wealth fund agreements involving intercollegiate athletics. 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 ``Protect College Sports from Private Equity and Foreign Influence Act'' or the ``PROTECT Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds the following: (1) Intercollegiate athletics are conducted under the auspices of nonprofit institutions of higher education and, when properly governed, promote student development, campus life, community identity, and broad public engagement in education--benefits that constitute a public good aligned with the educational missions those institutions are chartered to serve. (2) Intercollegiate athletics generate billions of dollars in revenue annually through national media contracts, sponsorships, and ticket sales that span multiple States, creating a significant impact on interstate commerce. (3) Public institutions of higher education are financed and supported by taxpayers through direct appropriations, tax- exempt status, subsidized Federal student aid, and tax- advantaged debt, and therefore have a heightened obligation to ensure that institutional assets--including intercollegiate athletics programs and facil