Mississippi house bill would permit high schoolers to make money off NIL

[ASFN Admin]

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Could Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) be coming to the state of Mississippi for high school student-athletes?

According to a WLOX report, a bill has been introduced by Representative Jeffery Harness back on January 16, would allow Mississippi high school athletes to make money off of NIL.

Currently, Mississippi is among 14 states that does not permit high school athletes to profit off of NIL earnings. If House Bill 1400, also known as the Mississippi High School Student-Athlete NIL Protection Act, passes then high school athletes from the Magnolia State would be able to begin receiving compensation off of NIL starting this upcoming summer on July 1st.

The bill does features some strict guidelines regarding what high school athletes would be able to earn NIL off of and what they would not.

One of those restrictions highlighted in the WLOX report is based on “it’s not contingent on athletic performance, statistics, or participation, it’s not offered as an inducement to enroll in or transfer to a particular school, it doesn’t conflict with existing Mississippi law, it explicitly prohibits ‘pay for play.’”

Also added is that the NIL contract has to be in writing and signed by both the student-athlete and their parent(s)/legal guardians. All deals must be reported to the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) for ”informational purposes only,” and that athletes or their parents/guardians could be paid up to $10,000 but anything surpassing that amount would have to go into a restricted trust account.

It was just back in December that MHSAA Executive Director Rickey Neaves touched on the chances of NIL coming to the state and wasn’t too keen on the idea of high school athletes making money through name, image, likeness.

“NIL is not for high school students,” Neaves then said. “Let’s be realistic. Is a 16 or 17-year-old mature enough to handle a million dollars? No. I know when I was that age, I would have blown it and probably ruined my whole career while doing it. Now, that’s not what everybody would do, but if that happens to one person, that’s one too many.”

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