Thirty-two states have laws on the books letting college athletes earn money from their name, image, and likeness, commonly shortened to NIL. The details vary from state to state, but the statutes cluster around the same handful of requirements: athletes must disclose their contracts, may hire agents, cannot endorse certain industries, and cannot sign deals that clash with their school’s own sponsors.1National Conference of State Legislatures. State Lawmakers Tackle NIL Rights for Student-Athletes
What the 32 Count Includes
The 32 figure counts states with formal NIL statutes granting athletes the right to profit from endorsements, social media partnerships, autograph signings, and personal appearances. The remaining states rely on gubernatorial executive orders or leave the question to the NCAA and individual universities.
The number has held roughly steady since a wave of legislation between 2021 and 2023. Some states have since revised their original laws to loosen restrictions that were putting their schools at a recruiting disadvantage. Alabama fully repealed its NIL law in February 2022 after legislators concluded the state rules were more burdensome than the NCAA’s own guidelines.2National Conference of State Legislatures. Student-Athlete Compensation South Carolina separately suspended its NIL law beginning in mid-2022. Georgia and Mississippi have amended theirs to give universities more room to help athletes find deals, and several states have removed compensation caps that were written into their original bills.
States That Acted by Executive Order
Where legislatures were not in session, some governors filled the gap. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear issued Executive Order 2021-418, which allowed athletes to sign with agents and accept market-value compensation. Kentucky later passed formal legislation that authorized agreements made under the order and then nullified it.3Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Senate Bill 6 Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed Executive Order 2021-10D, which let athletes at Ohio colleges earn NIL compensation, hire professional representation, and keep their eligibility, while requiring them to disclose contracts to their schools.4Governor of Ohio. Governor Signs Order Allowing Student Athletes to Earn Compensation from Their Name, Image, Likeness
Athletes in States With No Law or Order
Athletes in states without any state-level rule can still earn NIL income. The NCAA adopted an interim NIL policy in June 2021 letting all athletes participate in NIL activities regardless of state law, and that interim policy has been replaced by permanent bylaws that continue to permit NIL deals while adding structure around institutional involvement and disclosure.5NCAA.org. Division I Council Approves NIL Disclosure and Transparency Rules In these states, each university’s compliance department sets and enforces the internal rules, so requirements can differ from one campus to another even inside the same state. Schools generally mirror the most common statutory provisions: contract disclosure, conflict rules for team sponsors, and bans on certain industries.
Requirements That Show Up in Most State NIL Laws
The wording differs, but the substance of the state laws overlaps in five main areas.
Contract Disclosure
Nearly every state law, along with current NCAA rules, requires athletes to report their NIL agreements to their school. The NCAA’s Division I rules set a 30-day window after signing any deal worth more than $600.5NCAA.org. Division I Council Approves NIL Disclosure and Transparency Rules Some state statutes set shorter or longer timelines. Missing the deadline can bring internal discipline or a temporary loss of eligibility.
Professional Representation
State NIL laws generally guarantee athletes the right to hire agents or attorneys to negotiate marketing deals. The Uniform Athlete Agents Act, adopted in some form by a majority of states, requires anyone acting as an athlete agent to register with a state authority, usually the Secretary of State, and to disclose professional and criminal background information during registration.
Prohibited Industries
Most state laws bar athletes from endorsing products in categories that conflict with the mission of higher education. The specific lists vary, but the categories that appear most often are:
- Gambling and sports wagering, restricted in the vast majority of states with NIL statutes
- Tobacco and vaping, banned in nearly every state that lists prohibited categories
- Alcohol, frequently prohibited, though some states leave the question to university policy
- Adult entertainment, restricted across most states with NIL laws
- Cannabis and other controlled substances, explicitly named in states including Illinois and Mississippi
- Weapons, specifically banned in states such as Arkansas and Kentucky
Team Sponsor Conflicts
Athletes generally cannot sign NIL deals that conflict with their school’s existing sponsorship agreements. If a university has an apparel deal with one brand, an athlete on that team typically cannot sign a personal endorsement with a competing brand that would be visible during team activities. California, Colorado, and Florida require the school to disclose the specific contractual terms that create the conflict when asserting one exists. Athletes are also broadly prohibited from using university logos, trademarks, or other institutional marks in their own NIL deals.
Pay-for-Play Restrictions
State laws and NCAA rules consistently prohibit compensation tied directly to athletic performance or used as an inducement to enroll at a particular school. An athlete can earn endorsement income built on a personal brand, but a booster cannot offer payment in exchange for signing with a specific program. The line between legitimate NIL activity and recruiting inducements has been one of the hardest to enforce in practice.
How the House Settlement Changes What State Law Still Governs
A federal judge granted final approval of the House v. NCAA settlement, a $2.8 billion agreement that lets schools share revenue directly with athletes for the first time. Schools may pay athletes from a revenue-sharing pool capped at roughly $20.5 million per school in the 2025–26 academic year, rising about 4 percent annually to an estimated $21.3 million in 2026–27 and roughly $32.9 million by 2034–35.6National Conference of State Legislatures. What the NCAA Settlement Means for Colleges and State Legislatures
Third-party NIL deals, meaning endorsement contracts between athletes and outside companies, do not count toward that cap. All third-party NIL payments above $600 must be disclosed to a new clearinghouse, which reviews whether the deal reflects fair market value rather than disguised pay-for-play.7NCAA.org. Settlement Documents Filed in College Athletics Class-Action Lawsuits
The revenue-sharing model may eventually reduce the practical importance of state NIL laws, because the NCAA itself is now setting a national framework for athlete compensation. Existing state statutes still govern the areas the settlement does not address: prohibited industries, agent licensing, and state-specific disclosure timelines.
Federal Legislation Status
Congress has not passed a federal NIL law. Multiple bills have been introduced without reaching a final vote. The most recent significant proposal is the Student Athlete Fairness and Enforcement (SAFE) Act, introduced in the Senate in September 2025, which would replace the state patchwork with a single national standard and add a 10-year scholarship guarantee, five years of post-eligibility medical coverage for sports-related injuries at Division I schools, whistleblower protections, and an Office of Athlete Ombuds within the NCAA.8U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Senators Cantwell, Booker and Blumenthal Introduce Student Athlete Fairness Enforcement SAFE Act A competing proposal, the SCORE Act, has been introduced in the House. Until one of them becomes law, the 32 state statutes, the remaining executive orders, and the NCAA’s own bylaws form the governing framework, and where an athlete plays still partly determines which rules apply.