House select committee

National Drug Control Policy: The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) criticised proposed U.S. legislation that would withhold funding to WADA unless the agency meets specific U.S. governance demands, calling it an attempt to insert "bias into WADA's governance structure".

The bill, first introduced in January by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and advanced by the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, was a response to no-fault contamination cases involving 23 Chinese swimmers dating back to 2021, reports Xinhua.

The bill seeks to permanently provide "the ONDCP (Office of National Drug Control Policy) the authority to withhold up to the full amount of membership dues to WADA if it is determined that the Agency does not have a governance model that provides for fair representation of the U.S; has not fully implemented governance reforms; or has not allowed certain decision-making roles; specifically, independent athletes from the U.S. and other democratic countries, or representatives of such athletes, to have decision-making roles on the ExCo and Board, and in all relevant expert advisory groups, standing committees, permanent special committees and working groups," WADA said in a statement.