Statement from American Commitment President Phil Kerpen on the Score Act

Rep. Gus Bilirakis’s SCORE Act is the best, most sensible legislation proposed to rationalize the economics of college sports by standardizing the rules for NIL deals.

Currently, more than 30 states have their own unique NIL rules, which conflict on everything from how compensation can be paid to how the laws are enforced and the extent to which deals must be disclosed.

This situation makes federal legislation almost inevitable, but the Democrats’ proposed Safe Act would make the situation far worse, nationalizing, collectivizing, and bureaucratizing college sports under the auspices of the federal board.  The Score Act is a vastly preferable alternative.

The SCORE Act would helpfully clarify that student-athletes are not employees of their institution, conference, or the NCAA based solely on their participation in college athletics, and it grants the NCAA and conferences a limited antitrust exemption to enforce rules regarding athlete compensation to protect them from predatory trial lawyers.

Congress should pass this important legislation.

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Photo credit: Roman Fuchs