College sports are a unique and positive part of American culture that showcase the talent, skills and creativity of America’s student-athletes. These sports also provide a pathway to higher education for young men and women, many of whom are the first in their families to ever attend college.
Despite this monumental role in our society, college athletics face an uncertain future. Name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights for student-athletes have been of great benefit, but NIL has also produced an environment where laws that vary between states are leading to unintended consequences and chaos for student-athletes and schools.
As a result of inconsistent rules, athletes are forced to navigate competing standards and restrictions depending on the location of their school. As we have seen over the last few years, court decisions, legal settlements and executive orders cannot provide a comprehensive, lasting solution to this problem. Congress alone can create clear and consistent standards to stabilize college sports and ensure that future educational and athletics opportunities are available for student athletes.
That’s where the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements Act (SCORE) Act comes in. The SCORE Act protects the educational mission of college athletics and, for the first time in our nation’s history, establishes a federal bill of rights for college athletes, including uniform NIL rights, protection from predatory agents, opportunities to share directly in athletic department revenues, increased degree completion and scholarship opportunities, and health care guarantees, including mental health counseling and medical coverage for sports-related injuries with no out-of-pocket costs for years after graduation.Â
The SCORE Act also embodies and continues the historic commitment of colleges and universities to women’s and Olympic sports through a number of provisions, including a requirement that institutions sponsor a minimum of 16 varsity sports programs and a provision that permits a new governing entity to oversee and manage a revenue sharing cap in order to protect nonrevenue sports.Â
According to the most recent Department of Education athletics data, the four largest athletic conferences spent over $2.3 billion on sports other than basketball and football in fiscal year 2024 alone. This ongoing commitment has produced extraordinary opportunities and results for America’s student-athletes with 381 U.S. Olympians from 60 institutions participating in the 2024 Paris games. Of those 381 Olympic athletes, 219 were medalists. The SCORE Act will ensure that America’s storied legacy of Olympic sports not only continues but thrives.Â
I was blessed to spend 12 years in the U.S. House and Senate and recognize our polarized climate can make it difficult to find common ground. But, we must always remember, enacting good legislation is the art of the possible. As a former Democratic lawmaker, I believe the SCORE Act addresses the biggest challenges facing college athletics today and aligns with the values of our party – fairness, opportunity and reward for hard work.
Now is the moment for Congress to act to pass historic rights and benefits for college athletes across the nation. The SCORE Act transcends the partisan divide and seeks to restore stability to a uniquely American system that educates and develops our nation’s youth and unites our communities. My message to the Congress: let’s score a touchdown for college sports in America and get this done.
Joe Donnelly represented Indiana in Congress as a Democrat from 2007 to 2013 and as a member of the U.S. Senate from 2013 to 2019.
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