Bill in U.S. House challenges NCAA rule

From the News-Gazette
Monday, May 8, 2006
Bill in U.S. House challenges NCAA rule
Published Online May 5, 2006
By Christine Des Garennes

WASHINGTON: A House bill introduced Thursday would allow the University of Illinois to sue the NCAA and seek damages for lost revenue if barred from hosting a championship game.

The legislation proposes to limit the NCAA's ability to apply sanctions on colleges or universities because of team name, symbol, emblem or mascot, according to a news release issued by one of the bill's sponsors, U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson, R-Urbana.

Johnson introduced the bill with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Yorkville.

The move comes six days after the NCAA Executive Committee announced the UI could not host postseason events unless it gets rid of Chief Illiniwek, an 80-year-old university symbol.

The NCAA last August issued the policy prohibiting postseason competition at colleges or universities with "hostile or abusive" racial, ethnic or national origin mascots or symbols. The UI was one of 18 schools included on the list of institutions with "hostile or abusive" mascots or symbols.

Throughout the appeals process, the UI has stated that it should resolve the issue itself, that the NCAA Executive Committee exceeded its authority when it decided American Indian imagery was a "core issue" and that the NCAA set policy without following its bylaws.

The federal legislation has been in the works for months. Hastert approached Johnson about it in December, said Phil Bloomer, Johnson's spokesperson.

In response to the NCAA announcement last Friday, Johnson's office has been fielding numerous calls from constituents, most of whom have said, "Do something. Please do something," Bloomer said.

Thus the "Protection of University Governance Act of 2006."

"We're not doing this for political mileage but because it's the right thing to do," Bloomer said. Johnson is seeking re-election in November.

In a statement issued Thursday, Johnson said the NCAA was established as a sports management association but has since "assumed the mantle of social arbiters. They need to go back to scheduling ballgames and leave the social engineering to others."?

UI administrators have not looked at the legislation yet, but university spokesman Tom Hardy said he expects the UI "will follow it with some interest, but we are not going to make any assumptions about what will happen or what could happen," he said.

"We've been served well by taking a deliberative approach since it (the policy) came up last August. There is no timetable. No decisions have been made on how to proceed at this point," Hardy said.

The pro-Chief camp was elated.

"We'll be reaching out to as many alumni as we practically can. The calls have already started," said Roger Huddleston with the Honor the Chief Society. He expects many UI alumni around the country will be willing to throw their support behind the issue because "it's a 50-state issue, not a Champaign County issue," he said.

"The Chief is not the issue, as much as I love the Chief. This is about right of self-determination," Huddleston added.

"I feel that's a red herring," said Bryan Alkemeyer of the institutional autonomy argument. "The real issue there is a racially offensive mascot/symbol on campus," said Alkemeyer, co-coordinator of the Progressive Resource/Action Cooperative.

Alkemeyer expects to begin a campaign to stop the legislation.

David Gill, the Clinton Democrat running against Johnson in November, issued a statement about the legislation through his press secretary Brian Amoah.

"I am unaware of the legislation proposed by Mr. Johnson; however, I do believe the citizens of the 15th District would appreciate it if Tim would put the same effort into drafting legislation to help deal with $3 a gallon gas, uninsured health care, bringing troops home from Iraq and other problems that plague the 15th," he said.

Original cosponsors of HR 5289, besides Hastert and Johnson, are Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Ill; Rep. Allen Boyd, D-Fla.; and Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla.

The bill has not been assigned to a committee yet.