Athlete agents.

Existing law, the Miller-Ayala Athlete Agents Act, regulates specified activities of an athlete agent in representing or seeking to represent student athletes and professional athletes. Under this act, an agent is required to file with the Secretary of State specified information about his or her background, training, and experience and to advise an athlete of the availability of this information. The act also requires the athlete agent to establish a trust fund and deposit into it all funds received on behalf of the athlete. The act includes specified conflict-of-interest provisions pertaining to the activities of an athlete agent. The act imposes additional requirements pertaining to an athlete agent's transactions with a student athlete, specifying the circumstances under which an athlete agent may contact a student athlete or his or her family, and requiring the athlete agent to include a disclosure in a contract with a student athlete, warning the student that he or she may lose eligibility to compete in interscholastic or intercollegiate sports upon entering into the contract and allowing the student athlete to rescind the contract within 15 days. The act allows for a civil action to recover damages resulting from its violation and makes void any contract that fails to comply with its requirements. The act also makes a violation of its provisions a misdemeanor offense. This bill would make the provisions of the Miller-Ayala Athlete Agents Act inoperative on July 1, 2011, and would repeal those provisions as of January 1, 2012. The bill would enact the Uniform Athlete Agents Act, which would, commencing July 1, 2011, regulate the activities of an athlete agent in soliciting or contracting to represent a student or professional athlete. The bill would prohibit, subject to specified exceptions, a person from acting as an athlete agent without a certificate of registration issued by the Department of Industrial Relations. The bill would make void a contract to represent a student or professional athlete obtained in violation of these registration requirements, and would make voidable, at the athlete's election, an agency contract that does not conform to other provisions of the act. The bill would allow the acceptance of registration as an athlete agent from another state. This bill would additionally require that a contract between an athlete agent and athlete contain specified provisions. A contract with a student athlete would be required to contain additional provisions, including the right of a student athlete to cancel the contract within 14 days of its execution and a warning that the student may lose his or her eligibility to compete as a student athlete. The bill would require both the agent and student to notify the educational institution in which the student is enrolled within 72 hours of entering into the contract or before the student's next athletic event, whichever occurs first. This bill would provide for a civil action by a professional athlete, student athlete, or educational institution against an athlete agent for damages resulting from a violation of the requirements of the act. The bill would require an athlete agent to establish a trust fund and deposit into it any payment he or she receives on behalf of a professional athlete. The bill would modify conflict-of-interest provisions with respect to agents representing professional athletes and would incorporate other conflict-of-interest provisions that pertain to the activities of an athlete agent under existing law. This bill would also prohibit other types of specified conduct by an athlete agent and would make their commission a misdemeanor offense. Because the bill would create new crimes, it would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill in addition would make the violation of its provisions grounds for the department to revoke or suspend the athlete agent's registration and to excuse payment of the athlete agent under specified contracts. This bill would, commencing January 1, 2012, authorize the department to assess a civil penalty not exceeding $25,000 against an athlete agent. The bill would provide for the imposition of a fee for registration and renewal. The bill would direct that the fees and civil penalties be deposited into the Athlete Agent Registration Fund, which would be created by the bill. The bill would declare that its provisions are taken from the Uniform Athlete Agents Act of 2000, drafted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, and that uniformity of the law shall be considered when construing the bill's provisions. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.