# 119-hr-8097: Home Team Act of 2026

119-hr-8097, Home Team Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35] (D-TX); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8097
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-8097
- Congress: 119
- Title: Home Team Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-03-26
- Sponsor: Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35] (D-TX)
- Cosponsors: 7
- Policy area: Sports and Recreation
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Community control over franchise moves** would be strengthened by forcing owners to offer a team for sale locally before moving or eliminating it. The bill would set a prioritized order of local buyers and require a Treasury-appointed appraisal that deducts public stadium subsidies from the sale price. - Communities and local governments: Owners must give proper notice at least one year before the season in which relocation would occur and offer the franchise at the Treasury-determined fair market price. Priority buyers are, in order, a local government or home community cooperative; a local nonprofit or public-private partnership; then local private buyers. - Local governments and states: Units of local government or a State could sue for injunctions and monetary relief and the Attorney General may assess a civil penalty of $30,000 per day for violations. - Leagues and owners: Leagues operating in interstate commerce could not enforce rules that forbid ownership by a government entity or by members of the public, and owners must accept eligible local offers that meet or exceed the appraised fair price.

## Cosponsors (7)

- Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12] (D-MI), 2026-03-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Deluzio, Christopher R. [D-PA-17] (D-PA), 2026-03-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Garcia, Sylvia R. [D-TX-29] (D-TX), 2026-03-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Simon, Lateefah [D-CA-12] (D-CA), 2026-03-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. García, Jesús G. "Chuy" [D-IL-4] (D-IL), 2026-03-26T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14] (D-IL), 2026-04-13T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Bell, Wesley [D-MO-1] (D-MO), 2026-05-12T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Protect franchise workers' bargaining rights: benefit, medium. This bill would not be read to interfere with employees' rights to collectively bargain over terms and conditions of employment. It would also preserve any collective bargaining agreement that is in place on the date the law starts.
- Allow public and government ownership: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar leagues that operate across State lines from having rules that stop a government or members of the public from owning a team. Leagues could not forbid transferring a team to a government entity or to members of the general public.
- Local right to buy teams: benefit, medium. This bill would stop an owner from moving a team out of its home community, moving it across State lines, or eliminating it unless the owner first gives local buyers a fair chance to buy. The owner would have to give proper notice at least one year before the season or before elimination. Priority…
- Fines and lawsuits for bad moves: cost, high. This bill would let the Attorney General fine a team owner $30,000 for each day the owner breaks the relocation notice or offer rules. A State or unit of local government could also sue a team owner in federal court for an injunction or money damages for those violations.

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-hr-5361: George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2025
- 119-hr-2045: Medicare Dental, Vision, and Hearing Benefit Act of 2025
- 119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-8097 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8097)

## Related
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [119-hr-5361: George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5361)
- [119-hr-2045: Medicare Dental, Vision, and Hearing Benefit Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2045)
- [119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-51)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8097 (as of 2026-09-21).