The Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act was scheduled to go in front of the House of Representatives for voting on December 3rd, but delays in voting changed those plans. Voting on the act was delayed twice on Wednesday: first in the afternoon and was delayed again—indefinitely. The bill was originally introduced by House Republicans in July 2025, but now questions linger as to whether the bill will ever make it to the floor. The bill was originally to be voted on in September, but a week before the vote was “tentatively scheduled,” Republican leaders cancelled it.[1]
The SCORE Act prohibits institutions, conferences, or interstate intercollegiate athletic associations from restricting the ability of a student athlete to enter into a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) agreement.[2] Additionally, the bill requires institutions of higher education that generate $20 million or more in annual revenue from the institution’s intercollegiate activities to provide the following: (1) counseling and medical benefits to student athletes, and (2) establish and maintain at least sixteen varsity sports teams.[3] Under the SCORE Act, student athletes are not considered employees of their universities.
While the SCORE Act has received vehement opposition from House Democrats, the final “nail in the coffin” for Republican efforts to flip votes in favor of passing the bill likely resulted from the Congressional Black Caucus’s statement on the act. The Caucus issued a statement highlighting the significant shortcomings of the bill, mainly how it would “permanently strip college athletes of labor and employment rights, including the right to unionize; [and] prevent them from challenging harmful or anticompetitive conduct[.]”[4] The Congressional Black Caucus also held a successful meeting prior to Wednesday’s planned vote to convince members to vote no on the bill.
Additionally, Lane Kiffin’s departure from Ole Miss for LSU just days prior to the vote on the bill, highlighted one of the bill’s biggest shortcomings: its inability to bring stability to college sports, especially regarding the “coaching carousel” affecting colleges nationwide.
While the SCORE Act may not have had success in the House last week, the fight for passing bills on collegiate sports is far from over. Congresswoman Lori Trahan announced on December 1, just days before the SCORE Act vote was planned, that she would be introducing the College Athletics Reform Act. According to former Division I athlete, Congresswoman Trahan, the College Athletics Reform Act is designed to “stabilize college sports, protect athletes’ rights, and create a sustainable system for all schools and sports.”[5]
With voting on the SCORE Act delayed indefinitely, only time will tell how long it will take for the House Republicans to reintroduce the bill for voting, or if another bill will pave the way for NIL regulations in college sports.
[1] Amanda Christovich, How the SCORE Act Vote Fell Apart, Front Office Sports (Dec. 4, 2025), https://frontofficesports.com/how-the-score-act-vote-fell-apart/.
[2] https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4312
[3] Id.
[4] Congressional Black Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus Statement Opposing the SCORE Act, Congressional Black Caucus (Dec. 3, 2025), https://cbc.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3075.
[5] Lori Trahan, Trahan to Introduce College Athletics Reform Act (Dec. 1, 2025), https://trahan.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=3689.
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