A bill that would help regulate college sports and how athletes are compensated by schools made it through a House committee on Wednesday — a notable step on the way to it conceivably being put to a vote — while public criticism of the potential legislation also mounted.
After years of lobbying for help from Congress by college sports leaders, the SCORE Act is the first bill to move through committees in either chamber. The House Energy and Commerce committee and the Committee on Education and the Workforce both approved the bill with only Republican votes and no Democratic support.
That clears the way for the bill to go to the floor of the House for a vote, but the soonest that could happen is in the fall Congressional session starting in September, with summer recess looming.
“Student-athletes have consistently asked for meaningful reform — and today’s hearings are a step toward delivering on that request,” said NCAA senior vice president of external affairs Tim Buckley in a statement. “This bill reflects many student-athletes’ priorities, and the NCAA is committed to working with Congress on a continued bipartisan path forward that ensures the long-term success of college sports and the ongoing opportunities they provide to young people.”
Before either hearing was held, attorneys general from Florida, Ohio, New York, Tennessee and the District of Columbia sent a letter to six committee chairs and ranking members of Congress, detailing their strong opposition to the bill.
“The SCORE Act is a misguided effort that will enshrine in federal law the arbitrary and biased authority of the NCAA at its worst,” the letter said.
The proposed legislation from seven Republican and two Democratic sponsors prevents athletes from obtaining employment status and mirrors many of the terms of the recent House v. NCAA settlement. It would officially end most administrative restrictions on athletes’ name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation, but it allows schools and conferences to establish what is and isn’t permissible. Should it pass, it would override current NIL laws, which vary from state to state, and grant antitrust protections to the NCAA and conferences.
Critics say the bill is too deferential to the NCAA and power conferences, who have led the efforts to push for a federal law.
Even if the SCORE Act passes a House vote on partisan lines with Republicans in control, it faces a much higher bar in the Senate. The bill would need 60 votes to pass in the Senate, including seven Democrats.
One of those Democrats, Sen. Maria Cantwell, reaffirmed her opposition to the SCORE Act Wednesday. “This legislation rolls back athletes’ rights established less than 30 days ago, undermines women’s and Olympic sports, squeezes small and mid-major schools, and makes the big schools richer, more powerful and less accountable,” Cantwell said.
The players’ associations of several professional sports leagues also came out with a joint statement, encouraging lawmakers to reject the bill.
Big West commissioner Dan Butterly wrote in a letter to Rep. Michael Baumgartner (D-Wash.), another SCORE Act critic, that too many of the bill’s provisions are skewed toward what would work for schools in the wealthiest conferences rather than the majority of Division I schools.
“Institutions within The Big West are proud to offer meaningful educational and competitive experiences to student-athletes. But without financial safeguards, structural flexibility and inclusive policymaking, reforms like the SCORE Act may unintentionally harm the very programs they seek to protect,” Butterly wrote.
As written, the SCORE Act probably has little chance of garnering enough support to pass the Senate, if it gets there.
Still, the progress is meaningful. For the first time, lawmakers have prioritized the need to help college sports sort out its issues enough for a bill to be debated in committee and possibly sent to the full body for consideration.
“Passing federal legislation will ensure college sports will thrive into the future, and we look forward to continued collaboration on this legislation ahead of its consideration on the House floor,” the Power 4 conferences said in a statement.
The next notable step out of Washington on college sports could be coming from the executive branch.
President Donald Trump has signaled his interest in getting involved in the issue, possibly by forming a commission to search for solutions or by signing an executive order.
A draft of “Saving College Sports,” obtained by The Athletic, directs the Secretary of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board to address the debate over the employment status of college athletes.
It also calls for members of Trump’s cabinet and other political officials to pursue policy and protections in a number of other areas related to college sports, including rules that could be challenged by antitrust complaints and continued opportunity for scholarships and roster spots, along with preventing “unqualified or unscrupulous agents from representing athletes.”
— Stewart Mandel and Justin Williams contributed reporting.
(Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
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