In a House Energy Committee meeting on Tuesday to mark up the SCORE Act, Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) and Rep. Russell Fry (R-SC) spoke about a proposed amendment.
00:00On this side, any further discussion on the bill?
00:04All right, well, let's move to the amendatory process.
00:07So for what purpose does the gentlelady seek recognition?
00:13Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
00:16The clerk will report the amendment.
00:19Mr. Chairman, could the gentlelady
00:21please specify the amendment?
00:22Yes, it's 431201.
00:30Amendment to H.R. 4312, offered by Mr. Hand.
00:42Page two, strike line 12, and all that follows through line 17.
00:47Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order.
00:50The reading of the amendment is dispensed with.
00:53Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order.
00:55Okay, very good.
00:56The gentleman reserves a point of order.
00:58Without objection, the reading of the amendment is dispensed with,
01:01and the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes in support of her amendment.
01:05Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
01:06Mr. Sure.
01:07This amendment is simple.
01:08It strikes three provisions from this legislation that,
01:11when considered together in their current form,
01:14place significant restrictions on college athletes' ability to advocate for themselves.
01:19First, this amendment strikes the sweeping antitrust exemption that would allow the NCAA and conferences
01:26to adopt and enforce rules against athletes, no matter how harmful, no matter how absurd,
01:32without fear of being challenged in court.
01:35Now, all of the progress that we've seen in college sports in recent years on NIL, revenue sharing, and investments in women's championships,
01:45it didn't happen because the NCAA had a change of heart.
01:49It didn't happen because conferences stepped up or college presidents suddenly decided to do the right thing.
01:55It happened because athletes sued, resulting in rulings, settlements, and public pressure that forced the NCAA to change.
02:04And it's worth remembering just how hard the NCAA fought to stop them.
02:10In the Johnson v. NCAA case just last year, attorneys for the NCAA actually cited the 13th Amendment's slavery exception,
02:21as they had multiple times before to argue that college athletes are more like prison labor than employees.
02:29That was in 2024.
02:31That's who we want to hand a permanent antitrust liability exemption to?
02:36No guardrails.
02:38No sunset.
02:39Just total trust in the very institution that has fought tooth and nail to deny athletes their rights at every turn?
02:47Now, don't get me wrong.
02:49The NCAA has done some good things, particularly since President Baker took the helm.
02:56But where's the guarantee that that continues after he leaves?
03:01What if the next NCAA president goes back to business as usual?
03:06Second, this amendment strikes the provision that would codify into law for the first time that college athletes can never be considered employees.
03:15To be clear, right now, not a single college athlete is an employee, not of their school or their conference or the NCAA.
03:24And there is no pending case before the National Labor Relations Board seeking to change that.
03:29This provision is not a response to an urgent problem.
03:33If, and only if, athletes someday seek employee status, and if a court or board agrees, it will be because of how they are treated, the hours, the restrictions, the control over their lives.
03:48But this provision says it doesn't matter how they are treated.
03:53It slams the door shut forever, including on the right to collectively bargain, even if they want to do so without asking for compensation.
04:03And finally, this amendment strikes the provision that preempts all state NIL laws and blocks states from doing more to protect college athletes.
04:14The broad preemption language sets a low ceiling for athletes' rights and what states can do to protect them.
04:21One that states can't go above, even if they're trying to, for example, expand the health provisions included in the SCORE Act.
04:30This amendment will ensure that should this bill become law, it won't turn back the clock on athletes by handing power back to the NCAA to operate above the law.
04:41And I urge my colleagues to vote yes on this amendment.
04:45I yield back the balance of my time.
04:50Yes, the gentleman will state his point of order.
04:53I insist on the point of order, Mr. Chairman.
04:55The amendment violates Rule 10 Clause 1F of the House Rules because it is outside the scope of this committee's jurisdiction.
05:02Specifically, Ms. Trahan's amendment addresses the employment standing of college athletes, which is outside the scope of this committee's jurisdiction.
05:10The amendment is out of order.
05:12Does anybody, any other member wish to be heard on the amendment?
05:17Yes, you recognize.
05:19Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
05:21The SCORE Act shuts down college athletes' ability to assert their rights or seek protections in the courts, in state legislatures, or through collective bargaining.
05:32And this leaves athletes with almost no path to protect themselves and strips some of the rights enjoyed by every other American.
05:38So I support Representative Trahan's amendment striking the three sections of the SCORE Act that deny college athletes their rights and give the NCAA and conferences a blank check to reinstate decades of exploitation.
05:50I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.
05:52I yield back the balance of my time, Mr. Chairman.
05:55All right.
05:56Any further discussion on the amendment?
05:59No.
06:00On the point of order.
06:01On the point of order.
06:02On the point of order.
06:03On the point of order.
06:04Yes.
06:05Okay.
06:06You're recognized.
06:07Mr. Chairman, we're literally at the committee hearing reviewing this bill with all these provisions in here.
06:13How could it possibly be that you're taking away the ability to amend the bill in this committee when it's clearly within our jurisdiction?
06:24It's paradoxical.
06:26Okay.
06:28The Chair is ready to rule.
06:31Mr. Fry makes a point of order of that amendment offered.
06:35Mr. Chairman, there's additional comments.
06:37There are additional comments on that.
06:39On the point of order.
06:41Is that correct?
06:42Yes.
06:43Yes.
06:44Okay.
06:45You're recognized.
06:46Ms. Castor.
06:47Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
06:48I have just a fundamental question because I know that pieces of the bill are in three different committees in the Energy and Commerce, in two.
06:56Oh, right.
06:57Not judiciary for some reason.
06:58Okay.
06:59So, in education and workforce and in Energy and Commerce.
07:03There's a lot of overlap when it comes to how a lot of these provisions are going to work together.
07:10For example, I have a fundamental question about Title IX.
07:16Of course, everyone understands Title IX is the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in education,
07:24requires schools to offer equitable opportunities to women in athletics.
07:29Is it your intent in this bill to ensure that Title IX remains the law of the land and not have the new NIL and compensation provisions override Title IX?
07:48I mean, that's kind of a fundamental question on whether we move forward on all sorts of things, preemption and the liability protection.
08:01Okay.
08:02The Chair is ready to rule.
08:05Or if you can't answer that question about the legislative intent, maybe ask the Council on that.
08:11Yeah.
08:12Why don't we do that?
08:13I...
08:14No, no, no.
08:15Okay.
08:16Again, outside of the...
08:17Mr. Chairman?
08:18The committee's jurisdiction.
08:19Yes.
08:20Mr. Chairman?
08:21May I...
08:22So, this is going to be in two committees.
08:23So, the Title IX has three...
08:24Well, it's two...
08:25I think there are going to be two markups.
08:26There's three committees, two markups.
08:27And Ed and Workforce is going to markup the Title IX part of this legislation next week.
08:32I think they're scheduled.
08:33I don't know if that's been posted or not, but that's my understanding.
08:36Right.
08:37There...
08:38There's no...
08:39As I read the bill, there's no reference to Title IX.
08:41And I understand, Chairman Guthrie, that that is the jurisdiction of the Education and Workforce
08:48Committee.
08:49But...
08:50But I'm just...
08:51This is kind of a fundamental question for how this bill is going to operate.
08:57Is...
08:58Will Title IX remain the overriding law or do these new compensation formulas and NIL,
09:09is it your intent to supersede Title IX?
09:11No, it is not the intent at all to supersede.
09:13Yeah.
09:14If you all yield to Title IX, the Title IX should remain and completely want to ensure,
09:19if there's any question that Title IX remains in full effect.
09:22And that Title IX would take precedence over any of the formulas established in this bill.
09:32That there will still be that fundamental requirement for equity in athletics.
09:37Obviously, there'll be an inter...
09:39And workforce next...
09:40But yeah, that's certainly the intent of my...
09:43Of this side of the aisle, that when that comes to education workforce, Title IX is in full
09:48effect.
09:49We don't want to undermine Title IX.
09:50There's no intent to do that.
09:52Maybe...
09:53Okay.
09:54And maybe we can agree to work on that with the other committee going forward to clarify
09:59that.
10:00Would you all...
10:01Mr. Bill Arrakis, would you...
10:02And Mr. Secretary Guthrie, would you...
10:03I'll work with you.
10:05I will tell you that this is irrelevant to the point of order, though, at hand, this discussion
10:12of the bill.
10:13So, again, but I will definitely work with you.
10:17And also the chairman of the adding workforce committee.
10:20The...
10:21Do you want to yield?
10:23Yeah, I'll yield to you.
10:25So, if you look at just the house settlement, one of the big concerns is that the $20 million
10:30with some number for inflation that is distributed is a concern it would all go through Alabama.
10:36It all goes to football.
10:37If you're Kentucky, it all goes to basketball.
10:39And so that traditional Olympic sports or other sports would be left out.
10:43And so the...
10:44This bill actually maintains, I think it's 16, that each school has to maintain 16 athletic
10:50programs.
10:51So, they can't just say, all right, we're going to be a football school.
10:53We're going to do a basketball school and forget all the others.
10:57And Title IX, which will apply, that they have to be equitable as it was before is my full
11:02understanding of it.
11:03Does...
11:04Will the gentleman yield?
11:05I think it's the...
11:06My friend from Florida's time, but yeah.
11:08Yes, I have another point on that.
11:10But you have a fair point, but we want to make sure that's addressed.
11:13And I believe...
11:14And there...
11:15This bill is stronger than the settlement.
11:16Right.
11:17And there's the pot of money to be distributed.
11:19And then there's the other outside NIL deals that student athletes would be...
11:25Yes, students can have their...
11:26And I want to make sure that Title IX is going to apply to both of those.
11:30I guess that would be...
11:32The overall...
11:33The intent would be that it does.
11:35But I'll yield to Rep Tran.
11:38I just want to make sure that when we're talking about the forward-looking precedent setting
11:42of the house settlement and the 22.5 million dollars, we have some universities who are
11:47actually using the backward-looking distribution of the house settlement that does not...
11:54That does not account for Title IX, right?
11:57It's 90% going to football and basketball.
12:00The remaining 10% is split between all other men's sports and then all women's sports.
12:06And so I think...
12:07To the Congresswoman from Florida's point, is Title IX going to be the law of the land?
12:13And is it your intention that those distributions and the revenue share will be compliant with current law?
12:19Yeah, I'll leave that with Chairman Walberg, but we will work together on that if you would like to work together.
12:25I just don't know the Title IX answers that you're asking, but we...
12:29I know that's going to be in the workforce next week, but we will work with you to get there.
12:33Thank you very much.
12:34Because it is...
12:35It's fundamental to moving forward a bill of this scope and impact.
12:42Agreed.
12:43Agreed.
12:44I'm willing to work with you as well, as you know.
12:46The Chair is ready to rule.
12:48Mr. Fry makes a point on order that the amendment offered by Ms. Trahan is beyond the scope of the committee's jurisdiction.
12:56Rule 10 provides for the jurisdictional scope of each committee of the house that determines what legislation may be considered by each of the committees.
13:06The Chair finds that the amendment goes beyond the scope of this committee's jurisdiction and therefore not in order.
