NIL Incoming: Comparing State Laws and Proposed Legislation

*Updated 5/25/2023*

From the California State Capitol in Sacramento to Florida’s in Tallahassee, no two state offices have garnered more attention on the topic of collegiate student-athletes’ name, image, and likeness (NIL). In the fall of 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the “Fair Pay to Play Act” into law creating a domino-effect of subsequent state laws and proposals. Nine months later, the state of Florida passed their rendition on the topic under “Intercollegiate Athlete Compensation and Rights” with an effective date of July 1, 2021. 

Queue a legislative slew involving nearly every other state in the country.

Despite the effort made by legislators to push the envelope with NIL,  post-July 1 many stakeholders recognized it was the states who did not have a state law that had the upper-hand under the NCAA’s Interim NIL Policy. For this reason, as well as the growing interest from institutions to take a more hands-on approach with NIL, the 2022 legislative cycle has seen an uptick in proposals, amendments, and even repealing efforts.

On May 9, 2022, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors issued further guidance to the membership on NIL as it pertains to the recruiting process.

Though the NCAA’s interim policy was much lighter than their previously proposed legislation, the core tenants prohibiting pay-for-play and improper recruiting inducements stand. Nevertheless, the interim does direct student-athletes and schools in states with state laws on the books to defer to their rules of their locale.

Even though each state has unique clauses of their own, the NIL-specific language has all been trending in relatively the same direction. Unless otherwise described, these are the “general characteristics” of NIL legislation referred to in this article:

• Schools, Conferences, and Associations cannot limit a student-athlete’s ability to be compensated for their NIL
• Student-athletes can receive professional representation if they are a registered agent in the state
• Participation in NIL-related activities shall not impact a student-athlete’s athletic or scholarship eligibility
• NIL agreements cannot be in conflict with existing team contracts
• Schools, Conferences, and Associations cannot compensate a student-athlete for their NIL
• Schools may restrict student-athletes from participating in vice industries

*This list is not intended to describe any specific state’s legislation, but rather paint a picture of a common bill for any given state.

It is worth noting this article is a breakdown of legislation specific to collegiate student-athletes. For a breakdown of legislation at the high school level, visit this page.

Let’s take a look at each state a little closer.

State-by-State Breakdown

State	Status	Bill / Legislation	Effective Date	Notes
Alabama	Repealed / Suspended / Sunset Law	House Bill 404 (Repealed by House Bill 76)	Currently in Effect	First state to repeal its NIL law; schools now set policy.
Alaska	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Arizona	Enacted into Law	Senate Bill 1296	Effective Immediately	Law defers to NCAA interim policy; does not authorize student-athletes to use school trademarks.
Arkansas	Enacted into Law – Amended	House Bills 1671 & 1649	Jan 1 2022; Effective Immediately	Initial law and subsequent amendment allowing institutional foundations to facilitate NIL.
California	Enacted into Law	Senate Bills 206 & 26	Sept 1 2021	Early mover; SB 26 added more detail on institutional values conflict.
Colorado	Enacted into Law – Pending Governor’s Signature	Senate Bills 20-123 & 23-293	Jan 1 2023	Second state to adopt NIL legislation; amendment pending for institutional involvement.
Connecticut	Enacted into Law – Amended	House Bill 6402; Senate Bill 20	July 1 2021 / July 1 2022	Prohibits student-athlete use of institutional IP; amended subsequently.
Delaware	Enacted into Law	Senate Bill 297	Jan 1 2023	31st state to enact law; includes athlete-agent amendment.
D.C.	Legislation Proposed	—	—	Previous session only.
Florida	Enacted into Law – Amended	Senate Bill 646; House Bill 7B	July 1 2023 / Immediate	Universities saw disadvantage under original law; amendments allow institutional sponsors/third-parties more freedom.
Georgia	Repealed / Suspended / Sunset Law	House Bill 617	July 1 2021	Law sunset; school policies fill gap.
Hawaii	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Idaho	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Illinois	Enacted into Law – Amended	Senate Bill 2338; House Bill 1175	July 1 2021	Allows use of institutional marks (with pre-approval); schools now greater involvement.
Indiana	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Iowa	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Kansas	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Kentucky	Enacted into Law	Executive Order; Senate Bill 6; HCR 94	July 1 2021	Transitioned from executive order to statute.
Louisiana	Enacted into Law – Amended	Senate Bills 60 & 250	July 1 2021	Includes pre-approval for institutional marks and financial literacy requirements.
Maine	Enacted into Law	Legislative Document No.1893	N/A (March 31 2022)	29th state to enact NIL law.
Maryland	Enacted into Law – New Proposals	House Bills 125 & 1090	July 1 2023	“Safe & Fair Play Act”; bundling NIL with health & safety; further high-school NIL bill introduced.
Massachusetts	Legislation Proposed	Bill SD.1808	Immediately	Fourth consecutive session with NIL bills.
Michigan	Enacted into Law	House Bill 5217	Dec 31 2022	Gives institutions broad policy discretion.
Minnesota	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Mississippi	Enacted into Law – Amended	Senate Bills 2313 & 2690	July 1 2021	Unique booster-involvement provision; amendment allowed school involvement.
Missouri	Enacted into Law – Pending Governor’s Signature	House Bills 297/1346 & Amendment 3	Aug 28 2021; Immediate	Late adopter; significant amendment pending to increase institutional role.
Montana	Enacted into Law	Senate Bill 248	June 1 2023	Allows institutions to serve as agent for student-athlete.
Nebraska	Enacted into Law – Amended	Legislative Bills 962 & 1137	July 1 2023	“Opt-in” model; institutions choose to apply law.
Nevada	Enacted into Law – New Proposals	Assembly Bill 254; Senate Bill 70	July 1 2021	Lightest NIL law in country; additional legislation on deal reporting for collectives.
New Hampshire	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
New Jersey	Enacted into Law – Amended	SB 971, SB 4439	Effective Immediately	An early adopter with a delay enactment date, covers the general provisions
New Mexico	Enacted into Law – New Proposals	Senate Bill 94; House Bill 302	July 1 2021	Special footwear clause; proposed HB 302 to prevent school-age NIL.
New York	Enacted into Law – New Proposals	Senate Bill 5891	Jan 1 2023	Requires Division I schools to provide student-athlete assistance programs.
North Carolina	Enacted into Law – New Proposals	Executive Order; Senate Bill 636	July 2 2021	Governor took early executive action; bill may limit high school NIL oversight.
North Dakota	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Ohio	Enacted into Law	Executive Order	July 1 2021	Ohio State-led; universities given policy flexibility.
Oklahoma	Enacted into Law – Pending Governor’s Signature	Senate Bills 48 & 840	July 1 2023	“Opt-in” model; prohibits school-logo NIL, sports wagering deals.
Oregon	Enacted into Law – Amended	SB 5, SB 1505, HB 3694	Effective Immediately	Endured several rounds of revisions, Oregon’s NIL legislation covers all topics from institutional payments to video game features.
Pennsylvania	Enacted into Law – Amended	Senate Bill 381; House Bill 2633	July 1 2021 / Immediately	Removed 7-day disclosure requirement; schools may arrange deals.
Rhode Island	Legislation Proposed	House Bill 6673	Jan 1 2023	Northeastern state without law; bill seeks to add one.
South Carolina	Repealed / Suspended / Sunset Law	Senate Bill 685; 2022-23 Budget	July 1 2021	Highly restrictive originally; law suspended for 2022-23 fiscal year.
South Dakota	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Tennessee	Enacted into Law – Amended	House Bill 1351; Senate Bill 2392	Jan 1 2022	Southern state; amendments for institutional involvement enacted April 2022.
Texas	Enacted into Law – Pending Governor’s Signature	Senate Bill 1385; House Bills 1802/2804	July 1 2021	Restrictive law (e.g., prohibits school-logo use); new amendments in pipeline.
Utah	No Known Activity	—	—	—
Vermont	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Virginia	Enacted into Law	Senate Bill 223	Effective Immediately	Became 30th state to enact NIL law; Governor vetoed separate high-school NIL bill.
Washington	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
West Virginia	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Wisconsin	Legislation Proposed	—	—	—
Wyoming	No Known Activity	—	—	—

Timeline

Below is the timeline of all states enactment of NIL legislation:

9/30/19 – California (SB 206)

3/20/20 – Colorado

6/12/20 – Florida

7/27/20 – Nebraska

9/14/20 – New Jersey

12/31/20 – Michigan

3/26/21 – Arizona

4/8/21 – New Mexico

4/16/21 – Mississippi

4/20/21 – Alabama

4/21/21 – Arkansas

4/30/21 – Montana

5/6/21 – Georgia

5/6/21 – South Carolina

5/12/21 – Tennessee

5/18/21 – Maryland

5/28/21 – Oklahoma

5/31/21 – Nevada

6/14/21 – Texas

6/24/21 – Connecticut

6/24/21 – Kentucky

6/28/21 – Ohio

6/29/21 – Illinois

6/29/21 – Oregon

6/30/21 – Pennsylvania

7/1/21 – Louisiana

7/2/21 – North Carolina

7/14/21 – Missouri

8/31/21 – California (SB 26)

2/3/22 – Alabama (Repealed)

3/7/22 – Oregon (SB 1505)

3/9/22 – Kentucky (SB 6)

3/31/22 – Maine

4/11/22 – Virginia

4/18/22 – Nebraska (LB 1137)

4/18/22 – Mississippi (SB 2690)

4/20/22 – Tennessee (SB 2392)

5/4/22 – Connecticut (Raised Senate Bill 20)

5/20/22 – Illinois (House Bill 1175)

11/2/22 – Delaware

11/3/22 – Pennsylvania (House Bill 2633)

11/21/22 – New York

4/11/23 – Arkansas