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Committee advances SCORE Act to set national framework for college athlete compensation, amid concerns about Title IX and long‑term protections
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Summary
The House Education and Labor Committee on Tuesday voted to report HR 4312, the SCORE Act, which establishes a national NIL framework and states that student athletes are not employees.
The House Education and Labor Committee approved HR 4312, the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act, and voted to report the bill to the full House. The committee adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute and ultimately voted to report the bill by a recorded vote of 18 yeas to 17 nays.
Chairwoman McClain (as the manager of the substitute) and other supporters said the SCORE Act creates a national framework for name, image and likeness (NIL) deals, protects student athletes’ ability to receive NIL compensation, requires written agreements for NIL deals, and obliges athletic governing entities to include student and small‑school representation. The manager said the bill also clarifies that student athletes are not employees and includes enforcement mechanisms tied to compliance with federal student‑aid programs.
Opponents said the bill would permanently bar student athletes from seeking employment protections and could preempt stronger state protections and future remedies. Representative Scott warned the bill’s employee‑status ban could leave athletes without remedies for injuries or labor harms and highlighted that the bill’s medical coverage for sports injuries was limited to three years in most cases. Several members raised Title IX concerns — particularly whether the bill would preserve or exacerbate existing gender inequities — and some requested additional protections for women’s sports. Committee Republicans added reporting and compliance provisions and required institutions to offer certain academic disclosures for transfer students.
In debate, Representative Courtney proposed an amendment to extend post‑graduation medical coverage for athletics injuries from three to ten years; the amendment was defeated in recorded roll call. Other amendments addressing Title IX protections, competitive parity and travel burdens were considered and mostly rejected on recorded votes. The committee also received letters and statements from stakeholders and state attorneys general, which were entered into the record.
The committee directed staff to prepare the committee report and to make technical and conforming edits before transmitting the bill to the House Clerk.
