U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) recently joined three of her colleagues in requesting an update from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on how it is protecting the ability of international college athletes to exercise their rights to their name, image, and likeness (NIL) while retaining their status at American universities.
“While many students have rightfully benefitted from these new opportunities, international college athletes and college athletic programs face a credible risk that even the most basic NIL deal could violate the work restrictions of the F-1 visa,” wrote Sen. Capito and the bipartisan contingent in an April 29 letter sent to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
The senators asked for an update from the department on the steps it is taking to allow international athletes to benefit from recent changes to National Collegiate Athletic Association policies that allow college athletes to monetize their NIL.
“Last year, in Senate oversight hearings and in response to a previous letter requesting guidance and rulemaking, you committed to moving as quickly as you can on providing these important protections for foreign college athletes,” Sen. Capito and her colleagues wrote. “Unfortunately, despite that commitment to move quickly, DHS still has not updated its rules a year later.”
As a result, they noted, international students have gone another year without legal protections or clarity, leading star athletes to turn down opportunities, go through extreme hoops to stay in good standing with their visas, or consider leaving school.
“We request a written update on what steps DHS has taken to follow through on your commitment to protect those international college athletes and schools that seek to benefit from the blood, sweat, and tears they put into their sport,” according to their letter, which was led by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).