Pull up a chair.

Section 5: Federal preemption vs state authority

A federal NIL framework that preempts the worst state-by-state divergences without erasing state authority where it works. • Federal floor: transparency, minor protections, cross-border, dispute resolution. • State authority preserved: tax treatment, in-state recruiting, education-related accommodations. • Preemption only where state divergence creates a race-to-the-bottom. Not a federal takeover. A federal floor with state ceilings.

Section 4: Enforcement + dispute resolution

A neutral arbitration body — institution-funded, athlete-controlled. Replaces the unilateral NCAA enforcement model. • Funded by member institutions; controlled by an Athlete-majority board. • Standing panel of arbitrators with sports-law expertise. • Binding on institutional members; appealable to federal court only on procedural grounds. The NCAA's investigatory + adjudicatory model puts Athletes on the wrong side of a one-sided process. This Section proposes the structural fix.

Section 3: Cross-border athletes + visa-tied compensation

A growing number of NCAA athletes are international. Their compensation framework is incoherent. • F-1 student-athletes have NIL rights on paper but can't bank the money without immigration risk. • Current SEVIS guidance is incoherent and inconsistently enforced. • Filing asks DHS for explicit guidance + carve-outs so visa-tied compensation is no longer a labor-rights black hole. This is a labor problem dressed as a sports problem. Anchor it to existing labor-rights frameworks.

Section 2: Minor Athletes + Parental governance

Restricted Minor Account + KYC-aligned Parent verification. COPPA-aligned with NIL-specific protections. • Minor Athletes (under 18) have a restricted account: parental co-signature on payouts, hold-back for major contracts, transparency to the Athlete on every transaction. • Parents must complete KYC to be authorized signatories. • Aligns with COPPA but layers NIL-specific protections: mandatory cooling-off period on multi-year contracts signed before age 18.

Section 1: Compensation transparency

Standardized fee disclosure for ALL Athlete-Pro engagements. The AE Pro Code is proposed as the federal baseline. • Every Pro (CFP, agent, estate atty, mental health, career coach) discloses fee structure in plain English at engagement start. • Downstream referral economics disclosed up front — Athletes should never have to ask. • Standard machine-readable format so disclosures are comparable. This is the simplest, biggest unlock in the filing. Anchor it federally, allow state ratification for local context.

Preamble: The institution of the Athlete

Why the AEA is filing. The Athlete is the institution. Current rules treat them as a commodity. This filing proposes a federal framework that treats the Athlete as the load-bearing institution of sport — with the rights, protections, and economics that follow from that recognition. This Preamble grounds the five sections below. Each section is open for member comment.