Senate Advances College Sports Bill to Set Federal Rules

Senate Blocks Crypto Bill, Leaving Rules Unsettled

Google Eyes New Mexico Data Center as Blackstone Boosts Utility Offer

Meta Plans New AI Chips to Reduce Reliance on Nvidia

Red Sea Conflict Threatens to Raise Gas and Diesel Prices

Senate Advances College Sports Bill to Set Federal Rules

The Senate voted 74-24 on Tuesday to clear a procedural hurdle for the Protect College Sports Act of 2026, which has not received final Senate approval. The legislation, S. 4668, would establish federal rules for college sports amid conflicting state laws and court rulings affecting athlete compensation. It would affirm athletes' right to earn money from name, image and likeness agreements and require them to report compensation above $600 to their schools. Agents would have to register with a state, and their fees on endorsement contracts would be capped at 5%. The bill would give the NCAA, conferences and schools limited antitrust protection when enforcing rules on compensation, eligibility, transfers and recruiting, while taking no position on athletes' employment status. Co-sponsor Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., expressed cautious optimism about its House prospects, while the AFL-CIO and its Sports Council oppose the measure, arguing that the antitrust shield would weaken athletes' bargaining power.

ESPN / KSAT / Congress.gov / Senate Daily Press

Senate Blocks Crypto Bill, Leaving Rules Unsettled

The Senate on Tuesday failed to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, with a 49-50 procedural vote falling 11 votes short of the 60 needed to begin debate. The bill, H.R. 3633, would divide oversight of digital assets between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Republican leaders added ethics restrictions addressing public officials' digital-asset ventures, but the revisions failed to secure support from Democratic senators who had negotiated on the measure. A motion to reconsider preserves a path to another vote, although none has been scheduled. Bitcoin fell more than 5% from levels near $80,000, while Coinbase and Circle shares dropped as much as 10% following the result. The setback leaves the industry's push for statutory rules unresolved as the legislative calendar narrows before the November midterm elections.

CNBC / CoinDesk / Senate Daily Press

Google Eyes New Mexico Data Center as Blackstone Boosts Utility Offer

Google is exploring a data center in Lea County, New Mexico, as Blackstone Infrastructure seeks state regulatory approval for its $11.5 billion acquisition of TXNM Energy, the parent of Public Service Company of New Mexico. The utility acquisition has not closed, and TXNM and Blackstone on Tuesday proposed $300 million in customer and community benefits, including $220 million in rate credits, to support their application. The companies say the deal would help upgrade PNM's aging grid serving about 550,000 customers, but the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission has not approved the acquisition. The revised proposal follows regulators' finding that an earlier $400 million stock sale violated state law; the companies reversed that sale and extended their merger deadline to mid-2027. Google has announced no specific site, price or construction schedule but projects hundreds of permanent jobs and thousands of construction jobs and says it would pay for all energy the project consumes. The company estimates construction would use an average of more than 900,000 gallons of water daily and expects power from solar, wind, batteries and gas generation, raising resource questions in one of the nation's driest states.

Google / Source NM / KRQE / NM Political Report / TXNM Energy

Meta Plans New AI Chips to Reduce Reliance on Nvidia

Meta Platforms said Tuesday it plans to begin deploying its MTIA 450 artificial intelligence chips, code-named Arke, in data centers during the first half of 2027. The next version, MTIA 500, or Astrid, is expected to finish design in about a month and reach data centers by the end of 2027. Meta said it would deploy more than a gigawatt's worth of the chips over 12 months, with Broadcom collaborating on design and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. handling production. Company engineering executives said the chips improve performance per watt and per dollar and outperform Nvidia hardware on efficiency for inference, the process of running a trained AI model to answer queries. The planned rollout would give one of Nvidia's largest customers an alternative source of computing capacity as it seeks to reduce reliance on Nvidia's processors.

Yahoo Finance / Investing.com

Red Sea Conflict Threatens to Raise Gas and Diesel Prices

Americans could pay more for gasoline and diesel as Houthi advances near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a narrow gateway to the Red Sea, put oil shipments at risk. CNBC reported Tuesday that U.S. crude topped $105 a barrel and Brent reached $108.48 in intraday trading. Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline, an overland route that avoids the Strait of Hormuz, also remains largely shut after a drone attack last week, with officials expecting repairs to take several weeks. The Saudi-led coalition said Tuesday that Houthi missile and drone attacks on Khamis Mushait, Abha and Taif on Monday wounded 13 civilians and damaged seven homes and two vehicles. The Houthis said they targeted King Khalid Air Base in retaliation for Saudi air raids, while Houthi officials reported 54 Saudi strikes and three deaths, including two children. Neither side's casualty figures have been independently verified.

Al Jazeera / Washington Times / Religion News Service / The Hill / Anadolu / Gulf News / CNBC / AP

SEPTEMBER 16 1893: SETTLERS RACE TO CLAIM LAND IN OKLAHOMA

More than 100,000 settlers surged into the Cherokee Strip as a pistol shot signaled the start of the largest land run in U.S. history, staking claims to former Native American lands in a frantic dash for homesteads. Some participants cheated by sneaking into the territory ahead of time to hide and claim prime parcels the instant the run began, earning the nickname “sooners,” which later became a lasting symbol for Oklahoma itself.

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Sources

1. ESPN / KSAT / Congress.gov / Senate Daily Press
2. CNBC / CoinDesk / Senate Daily Press
3. Google / Source NM — Google / KRQE / Source NM — Utility Merger / NM Political Report / TXNM Energy via PR Newswire
4. Yahoo Finance — Deployment Plans / Investing.com / Yahoo Finance — Arke and Astrid
5. Al Jazeera / Washington Times — Air Base Attacks / Washington Times — Casualty Claims / Religion News Service / The Hill / Anadolu / Gulf News / CNBC / PBS NewsHour / AP via 2 News