WASHINGTON–U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, on Wednesday reintroduced legislation to promote gender equity in college and K-12 sports. The Fair Play for Women Act would promote fairness in participation opportunities and institutional support for women's and girls' sports programs, ensure transparency and public reporting of data by college and K-12 athletic programs, hold athletic programs and athletic associations more accountable for Title IX violations and discriminatory treatment, and improve education and awareness of Title IX rights among college and K-12 athletes as well as athletics staff. U.S. Representative Alma Adams (D-N.C.) introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“For all the progress we’ve made since Title IX, women and girls still don’t get a fair shot when it comes to sports. Schools are spending less on recruiting, facilities, and scholarships for women’s teams, and too many have bent the rules to make their numbers look better than they really are. The Fair Play for Women Act would bring real accountability and transparency to college and K-12 sports so all athletes get the support they deserve,” said Murphy.

"For too long, schools have found ways to bend the rules and shortchange women athletes—skewing the numbers, dodging accountability, and failing to meet the promise of equality. The Fair Play for Women Act strengthens Title IX enforcement, brings real transparency to college and K-12 athletics, and ensures every girl gets the same shot at success as her male peers,” said Adams.

Specifically, the Fair Play for Women Act would:

  • Hold schools and athletic associations accountable for discriminatory treatment. The bill would codify that state and intercollegiate athletic associations, including the NCAA, cannot discriminate based on sex, along with asserting non-discrimination protections within all school-based athletics, including club and intramural sports. It would also provide a robust private right of action for all athletes in their discrimination claims, making it easier for athletes to push for change at their schools. The bill would authorize the Department of Education to levy civil penalties on schools that repeatedly discriminate against athletes and require schools to submit publicly available plans to remedy violations, providing more tools to compel compliance and resolve ongoing discrimination.
  • Expand reporting requirements for college and K-12 athletics data and make all information easily accessible to the public. The bill would establish a one-stop shop for key athletics data by expanding the scope and detail of reporting by colleges, extending these requirements to include athletics at elementary and secondary schools, and requiring the Secretary of Education to house all data on the same public website. The bill also requires that schools certify the data they submit and report how they are claiming Title IX compliance, it directs the Department of Education to publish an annual report on gender equity in school-based athletics. These provisions will help weed out reporting tricks by programs to skirt non-discrimination laws and make it easier for athletes and stakeholders to evaluate persisting gaps in athletic programs or use publicly available data in their claims against schools.
  • Improve education of Title IX rights among athletes, staff, and stakeholders. The bill would require Title IX trainings on an annual basis for all athletes, Title IX coordinators, and athletic department and athletic association staff. The bill would also establish a public database of all Title IX coordinators at colleges andK-12 schools, included in the one-stop shop for athletics data. These provisions will ensure all people involved with K-12 and college athletics understand what Title IX means and what students’ rights are under the law.

U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) co-sponsored the legislation. U.S. Representatives Lori Trahan (D-Mass.) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) co-sponsored legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“The Fair Play for Women Act really is about fairness—enabling women and girls to have equitable opportunities in sports and holding schools accountable when they don’t. The stark truth is that despite progress after Title IX, women and girls still face fewer opportunities than boys to participate in sports and insufficient resources for their teams. This necessary legislation will confront the continued lack of gender equity and fairness in sports,” said Blumenthal.

“Despite decades of underinvestment and neglect, women’s sports have surged in popularity, proving what women athletes have always known—there is a massive, untapped audience eager to support them,” said Trahan. “The Fair Play for Women Act will build on that momentum by addressing the real barriers still holding women’s sports back: Title IX loopholes that deny thousands of women and girls every day the opportunity to compete and thrive in the sports they love.”

"Since the passage of Title IX we've seen an increase in the number of female students participating in sports. Despite that increase, college women still have nearly 60,000 fewer athletics opportunities than men, and high school girls have about one million fewer opportunities to play sports than high school boys. I'm co-leading the Fair Play for Women Act to promote strong Title IX protections and compliance from K-12 schools and colleges,” said Bonamici.

Athlete Ally,  Billie Jean King Foundation, Champion Women, Katie's Save, National Organization for Women, National Women's Political Caucus, The Drake Group, Voice in Sport Foundation, Women's Sports Foundation, and the Democratic Women's Caucus endorsed the legislation.

"The Fair Play for Women Act is a step in the right direction to ensure student-athletes are able to play, compete and lead - in sports and beyond - without barriers," said WSF CEO Danette Leighton. "For 50 years and counting, the Women's Sports Foundation has championed a simple message: when girls play, they lead and we all win! That's why we applaud the introduction of this bill, as it seeks to create a level playing field to allow girls and women to thrive through the transformative power of sports."

"The Drake Group applauds the Senator Murphy/Representative Adams team for stepping up to the plate to provide better Title IX compliance tools through the Fair Play for Women Act.  The legislation closes significant collegiate athletics reporting loopholes and establishes long overdue K-12 reporting and training obligations. As important, the Act provides for a private right of action and civil penalties as well as clearly holding athletics governance associations accountable for discriminatory treatment. This is good, common sense gender equity legislation deserving of widespread non-partisan support," said Kassandra Ramsey, Esq., President, The Drake Group

"The Fair Play for Women Act addresses the real issues that girls and women in sport face," said Stef Strack, Founder & CEO of VOICEINSPORT & VOICEINSPORT Foundation. “The real issues are systemic discrimination, the institutions that violate Title IX without consequence, and the leaders who refuse to enforce the law in public schools across the US. The Fair Play for Women Act will strengthen Title IX by increasing education, ensuring there is an enforcement mechanism in place and ultimately providing transparency that everyone deserves."

A one-pager of the legislation is available HERE. Full text of the legislation is available HERE.

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