Congress sends wide-ranging questions to LSU President and Southern California President

USA Today - "Congressional interest in the recent run of mega-contracts for college football coaches ramped up a notch Friday, when the chair of a House Ways and Means subcommittee announced that he has written letters to the presidents of two schools raising questions about how their athletics programs are “furthering the educational purposes” for which the schools receive tax-exempt status."

"The letters from Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-N.J.) to LSU President William F. Tate IV and Southern California President Carol Folt come in the wake of those schools’ respective hires of Brian Kelly away from Notre Dame and Lincoln Riley from Oklahoma."

"U.S. Congressman cites football coach deals in questions to schools about tax-exempt status."

"Congressional interest in the recent run of mega-contracts for college football coaches ramped up a notch Friday, when the chair of a House Ways and Means subcommittee announced that he has written letters to the presidents of two schools raising questions about how their athletics programs are “furthering the educational purposes” for which the schools receive tax-exempt status."

"Kelly’s arrangement with LSU is for 10 years, with basic compensation set to be at just over $100 million. Because USC is a private school, the terms of Riley’s deal have not been made public. Those two agreements came not long after Michigan State made a 10-year, $95 million contract to retain Mel Tucker and Penn State a 10-year, $85 million agreement to retain James Franklin."

"Pascrell chairs the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight. His letters align with comments Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) made to USA TODAY Sports 2½ weeks ago."

"In the letters to LSU’s and USC’s presidents, Pascrell wrote: “Undoubtedly, most of the activities undertaken by” the school “further the university’s exempt purposes. However, recent reports about compensation” to the football coaches “have raised significant concerns about whether the university is operating consistent with its tax-exempt status.” The letters cite not only the deals with Kelly and Riley, but also the buyouts paid to their predecessors, each of whom were fired during this season. LSU’s former coach, Ed Orgeron, will be getting just under $17 million."

"Pascrell’s letters ask LSU and USC to respond by Jan. 14 to a set of nearly 30, wide-ranging questions about their athletics programs and finances. Among them are:"

"How do the football and men’s basketball programs “contribute to the university’s educational mission (other than the production of income)?”

"Why should the Federal government subsidize the university’s athletics programs and escalating coaches’ salaries and other non-cash benefits?"

"They also ask how much the schools paid in connection to the excise tax on pay to highly compensated employees."

What should irk all people about congress meddling like this, is that businesses are providing schools with a real need, with funding not for just coaches, but also renovations for all athletics, all of this limits the costs to universities and allows them to grow. Congress can't handle their own finances, but are going to tell universities how!



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