Protect College Sports Act: Georgia’s Democrat Senators Surprisingly Disagree Amid Conferences’ Support

The Protect College Sports Act, championed and authored by Sen. Ted Cruz, has now passed the Senate 77-22 and is headed to the House, but with Georgia’s two Democrat Senators lining up on different sides of the issue.

The bill has drawn bipartisan support from not only its cosponsors, but also from voices across the Peach State.

Its goal is to compensate student-athletes fairly, allow for the addition of transfer limits, and solve what some senators referred to as “chaos” in the college sports “system.”

The bill creates a solution for “name, image, and likeness” (NIL) agreements, where athletes can be compensated with millions of dollars for their brand or image being used in advertising that generates revenue for their programs.

Ossoff and Warnock in Disagreement

However, the Protect College Sports Act has created quite the disagreement and, in some ways, controversy in Georgia, with the state’s two Democrat senators voting differently.

While Sen. Jon Ossoff voted in favor of the bill, Sen. Raphael Warnock voted in opposition.

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Ossoff explained to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he viewed the legislation as a step in the right direction for sports teams that don’t make as much revenue as other sports, such as football.

“College sports is genuinely in crisis, and the programs that are closing are women’s sports programs and non-revenue Olympic sports,” he said, USA Today reports.

He added that he would back continued improvements to the bill as it continues to move forward.

Warnock, however, voted in opposition, alongside 22 other senators who did not back the legislation as it stands today.

According to USA Today, Warnock said, “I’d like to see a whole lot more protections for these athletes. I think the bill does a lot better job protecting the NCAA and others in a very lucrative business, and that wealth has been created on the backs of these athletes.”

Conferences Offer Support for the Bill

The Daily Signal reached out to the University of Georgia Athletics Program for comment on the legislation, and while it declined to comment, a spokesperson highlighted the Southeastern Conference’s statement on the legislation, which UGA falls under.

The statement reads, “The Bipartisan Senate passage of the Protect College Sports Act represents an important step toward establishing a clear and durable national framework for college athletics.”

“We look forward to working with members of the House of Representatives to advance legislation that protects student-athletes, provides consistent national standards for universities and conferences, supports women’s and Olympic sports, and strengthens the long-term future of college athletes.”

“The SEC and our 16 member universities will remain actively and constructively engaged as the legislative process continues, with the goal of achieving a national framework that provides stability, accountability, and clarity for college sports.”

Similarly, the Atlantic Coast Conference, which Georgia Tech falls under, also issued a statement on the bill, saying, “The Senate’s passage of the Protect College Sports Act represents an important step in the ongoing discussions surrounding the future of college athletics.”

“We appreciate the bipartisan work that brought the bill to this point and, as the process moves to the House, we will continue supporting all 18 of our member institutions as they engage directly with Congress and other stakeholders.”

The legislation heads to the House following the midterms this November.