A bipartisan joint committee from the House of Representatives has introduced a new bill that could change the landscape of college sports by creating federal standards to overcome legal uncertainty and a patchwork of state laws.

The Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act is a product of collaboration between the Committee on Energy and Commerce, Committee on Education and Workforce, and Committee on the Judiciary.

The legislation seeks to restore order and protect student athletes by reaffirming the student-first model, defending Olympic sports, protecting athletes from exploitation by bad actors, establishing clear regulatory and enforcement mechanisms and improving transparency and accountability.

The SCORE Act would provide legal protections for athletes to enter into Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) agreements and to hire agents while receiving student privacy protections and support in financial literacy, brand-building and contract guidance.

According to its sponsors, the legislation would “protect the name, image, and likeness rights of students athletes to promote fair compensation with respect to intercollegiate athletics, and for other purposes.”

The bill would also require schools to provide academic and career counseling for student athletes and to provide robust mental health services and mental health education.

Under the SCORE Act, student athletes would receive coverage of medical expenses for athletic injuries for up to 3 years post-enrollment and will have their scholarships protected regardless of injury of NIL activity.

Chairmen Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Tim Walberg (R-MI), and Jim Jordan (R-OH) lauded the SCORE Act as a piece of “landmark legislation” and issued a statement saying, “NIL offers an endless array of opportunities for student-athletes to make the most of their college experience, but the lack of clear guardrails has left athletes and universities on unstable ground. The SCORE Act creates a national framework that supports student-athletes and recenters the educational mission of college athletics.”

Two Democrats, Reps. Janelle Bynum (D-OR) and Shomari Figures (D-AL), joined Republicans in introducing the bill on Thursday although the bill has largely faced opposition from the Democratic Party.