Legislators in the N.C. General Assembly filed a bill Monday to respond to any future boycott by an intercollegiate athletic association — like the Atlantic Coast Conference.
If the athletic association boycotts the state of North Carolina, House Bill 728 would require any UNC-system schools in the association's conference to immediately announce their intent to withdraw.
“Any constituent institution of The University of North Carolina that is a member of that intercollegiate athletic conference shall immediately provide written notice to the conference that the constituent institution intends to withdraw from the conference no later than when the assignment of its media rights expire,” the bill said.
If passed, UNC-system schools would be prohibited from granting media rights to a conference that has enacted a boycott on North Carolina for at least five years after the boycott has ended.
The bill, sponsored by four Republicans in the N.C. House of Representatives, would also give the General Assembly final authority in determining the membership status of UNC-system schools in intercollegiate athletic associations.
This comes after a partial repeal of House Bill 2 and an announcement by ACC Commissioner John Swofford that discussion of championship sites could reopen.
“This discussion will take place in the near future, and following any decisions by the ACC Council of Presidents, announcements will be forthcoming,” he said.
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