Key Takeaways from Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subcommittee Hearing: "Winning Off the Field: Legislative Proposal to Stabilize NIL and College Athletics"
June 12, 2025
Witnesses: Mr. William King, Associate Commissioner/Legal Affairs Compliance, Southeastern Conference; Ms. Sherika A. Montgomery, Commissioner, Big South Conference; Ms. Ashley Cozad, Swimming Student Athlete and Division I SAAC Chair, University of North Florida ‘25; Mr. Ramogi Huma, Executive Director, National College Players Association
House Settlement
Congressman Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade
“The recent House v. NCAA settlement represents more than just a court decision. It marks a fundamental change in how college athletics will operate. Going forward, the timing couldn't be more appropriate for legislative action.”
Congressional Action – SCORE Act
Congressman Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade
“[The SCORE Act] is not just another proposal. It's a targeted solution designed to bring predictability, fairness, and long-term balance to a system that has rapidly evolved without structure.”
“[The bill] is built around three core principles: clarity, by establishing a national standard that replaces the current patchwork of state laws; stability, by setting reasonable guardrails around the transfer portal and NIL deals to protect both athletes and programs; and support, by ensuring benefits like scholarship protections and financial literacy programs are not optional, but expected.”
Sherika A. Montgomery, Commissioner, Big South Conference
“Despite the positive and impactful change made thus far, there are areas that can only be addressed with the leadership of Congress. Those areas are affirming student athletes are not employees, providing safe harbor from liability complaints, and preempting state law.”
William King, Associate Commissioner/Legal Affairs Compliance, Southeastern Conference
“We need preemption of state laws governing name, image and likeness and compensation of college athletes…We need a federal law that creates a uniform national standard with meaningful enforcement and preempts state laws that conflict with the federal law.”
Ashley Cozad, Swimming Student Athlete and Division I SAAC Chair, University of North Florida ‘25
“Legislation of this nature would benefit student athletes like me, because I'm the type of student athlete you don't hear about on the SEC top 100, and yet there are hundreds of thousands of us out there that are just as capable of capitalizing on NIL and doing a really great job at it, so having universal NIL rules would create that environment where we could all capitalize equally and move forward.”
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06):
“States are already considering laws that will distort the system and risk the promise of fairness and creating what I worry is a race to the bottom. We need a national framework with clear and real enforcement mechanisms. We must stay focused on protecting the athletes themselves, supporting the educational opportunities and programs they value, preserve the broad range of sports that colleges offer, and upholding the spirit of what college athletics has been, is, and should continue to be across the country.”
Risks of Employment Status
William King, Associate Commissioner/Legal Affairs Compliance, Southeastern Conference
“The financial impact of employee status for college athletes would be devastating, forcing many Division I schools to abandon athletics altogether, while those with greater resources would likely reduce the number of sports they offer, or otherwise, alter the student athlete experience.”
Ashley Cozad, Swimming Student Athlete and Division I SAAC Chair, University of North Florida ‘25
“While classifying student athletes as employees may seem logical because of the time we pour into our sports, it would be incredibly detrimental for the majority of student athletes. Most institutions would not be able to afford an employee model; it would only have the funds to sponsor a football or basketball team. This model would decimate opportunities for athletes like me and thousands of others throughout the country.”
“If we go to an employee model, I wouldn't be here. There would not be any more non-revenue generating sports…We need protections for Olympic sports. You would not see NCAA college athletes representing us for Team USA.”
Value of the Collegiate Athletic Experience
William King, Associate Commissioner/Legal Affairs Compliance, Southeastern Conference
“We're the only country in the world where elite athletes do not have to choose between education and their sports, but instead, can use their athletic ability to receive a college education for free while pursuing their athletic goals.”
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06):
“College sports are the lifeblood of so many communities across the nation, and they sure are in Michigan…and I've seen firsthand how these programs can inspire, educate, and uplift college athletes, and I've also seen how some of this may endanger athletics at smaller schools and a broader range of college sports across athletic departments.”
“College athletics are not just pipelines to the pros. For a lucky few, college athletics are supposed to be pathways for a good education, degrees, leadership, and lifelong opportunity, and that's why federal legislation must include real athlete representation for both revenue and non-revenue sports from large and small schools.”
Absence of Federal Standards
Sherika A. Montgomery, Commissioner, Big South Conference
“The absence of a preeminent uniform standard has led to a Wild West environment here, where, sadly, our student athletes are put into a vulnerable position where they can easily be exploited by those who do not have their best interests in mind.”
Ashley Cozad, Swimming Student Athlete and Division I SAAC Chair, University of North Florida ‘25
“While it is evident that NIL has had positive impacts on student athletes, the lack of transparency and the lack of uniform regulation, due to differing state laws, has created an unstable environment.”
“The hodgepodge of state laws remains a nightmare for student athletes, who are often unsure of what rules apply, where and to whom. It is imperative that Congress take action to establish federal guidelines surrounding NIL so that student athletes are on the same playing field across institutions over state lines, as to diminish the confusion and competitive advantages created by conflicting state laws.”
Congressman Russell Fry (R-SC-07)
“What we've seen throughout the country are states carving out specific protections for their in-state schools, and as our student athlete has talked about, it becomes an untenable situation, an unmanageable situation, on how we go about governing or playing college sports when you don't know the legal framework with a 50-state patchwork of laws.”