U.S. Sen. John Thune said the federal government should create laws standardizing how college athletes can be paid.

He made the comments this week at a Sioux Falls forum discussing NIL rules with NCAA president Charlie Baker.

NIL refers to the name, image, and likeness of a player. NCAA student-athletes are eligible to get paid thanks to recent NIL rule changes. Thune said student-athletes and their families deserve federal protection.

He said universal federal NIL rules would prevent individual states from creating laws that benefit their colleges only.

The congressional engagement listening session was hosted by Northern Sun Intercollege Conference and Augustana University. Hundreds of student-athletes from Augustana and the University of Sioux Falls were in attendance.