MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2020 Regular Session
To: Universities and Colleges; Judiciary, Division A
By: Senator(s) Carter
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH THE MISSISSIPPI FAIR PAY TO PLAY ACT RELATING TO STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS; TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DEFINITIONS; TO PROHIBIT A POSTSECONDARY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION FROM UPHOLDING ANY RULE, REQUIREMENT, STANDARD OR LIMITATION THAT PREVENTS STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS FROM EARNING SPECIFIED COMPENSATION; TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS FROM PREVENTING STUDENT-ATHLETES FROM EARNING SPECIFIED COMPENSATION; TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS FROM PREVENTING POSTSECONDARY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS FROM PARTICIPATING IN INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; TO PROHIBIT POSTSECONDARY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS FROM COMPENSATING PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS; TO AUTHORIZE STUDENTS PARTICIPATING IN INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS TO OBTAIN PROFESSIONAL AND LEGAL REPRESENTATION AND TO PROVIDE REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCH REPRESENTATION; TO PROVIDE THAT SPECIFIED SCHOLARSHIPS ARE NOT CONSIDERED COMPENSATION AND TO PROHIBIT THE REVOCATIONS OF CERTAIN SCHOLARSHIPS FOR SPECIFIED REASONS; TO ESTABLISH THE STUDENT-ATHLETE NAME, IMAGE, AND LIKENESS TASK FORCE; TO PROVIDE FOR THE MEMBERSHIP AND DUTIES OF THE TASK FORCE; TO CREATE NEW SECTION 93-19-17, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE A STUDENT-ATHLETE WHO IS OVER THE AGE OF 18 TO ENTER INTO CONTRACTS AUTHORIZING THE USE OF HIS OR HER NAME, IMAGE OR LIKENESS; TO AMEND SECTION 73-42-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE DEFINITION OF ENDORSEMENT CONTRACT TO INCLUDE AGREEMENTS REGARDING THE USE OF A STUDENT-ATHLETE'S NAME, IMAGE OR LIKENESS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. This chapter shall be known and cited as the "Mississippi Fair Pay to Play Act."
SECTION 2. As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(a) "Intercollegiate sport" means a sport played at the collegiate level for which eligibility requirements for participation by a student-athlete are established by a national association for the promotion or regulation of collegiate athletics.
(b) "Student-athlete" means an individual who engages in, is eligible to engage in, or may be eligible in the future to engage in, a sport for a professional sports team or in any intercollegiate sport at a postsecondary educational institution. If an individual is permanently ineligible to participate in a particular intercollegiate sport, the individual is not a student-athlete for purposes of that sport.
(c) "Postsecondary educational institution" means a public university or community college or private university or college.
SECTION 3. (1) (a) A postsecondary educational institution shall not uphold any rule, requirement, standard, or other limitation that prevents a student of that institution from participating in intercollegiate athletics from earning compensation as a result of the use of the student's name, image, or likeness. Earning compensation from the use of a student's name, image, or likeness shall not affect the student's scholarship eligibility;
(b) An athletic association, conference, or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics, including, but not limited to, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the National Junior College Athletic Association, shall not prevent a student of a postsecondary educational institution participating in intercollegiate athletics from earning compensation as a result of the use of the student's name, image, or likeness; and
(c) An athletic association, conference, or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics, including, but not limited to, the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the National Junior College Athletic Association, shall not prevent a postsecondary educational institution from participating in intercollegiate athletics as a result of the compensation of a student for the use of the student's name, image, or likeness.
(2) A postsecondary educational institution, athletic association, conference, or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics shall not provide a prospective student-athlete with compensation in relation to the athlete's name, image, or likeness.
(3) (a) A postsecondary educational institution, athletic association, conference, or other group or organization with authority over intercollegiate athletics shall not prevent a Mississippi student participating in intercollegiate athletics from obtaining professional representation in relation to contracts or legal matters, including, but not limited to, representation provided by athlete agents or legal representation provided by attorneys.
(b) Professional representation obtained by student-athletes must be from persons registered as athlete agents as provided in Sections 73-42-1 et seq. of the Uniform Athlete Agent Act. Legal representation obtained by student-athletes must be from attorneys licensed to practice law in the state.
(c) Athlete agents representing student-athletes shall comply with the federal Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act in 15 U.S.C. Sections 7801-7807 in their relationships with student-athletes.
(4) A scholarship from the postsecondary educational institution in which a student is enrolled that provides the student with the cost of attendance at that institution is not compensation for purposes of this section, and a scholarship shall not be revoked as a result of earning compensation or obtaining professional or legal representation pursuant to this section.
(5) (a) A student-athlete shall not enter into a contract providing compensation to the student for use of the student's name, image, or likeness if a provision of the contract is in conflict with a provision of the student's team contract.
(b) A student-athlete who enters into a contract providing compensation to the student for use of the student's name, image, or likeness shall disclose the contract to an official of the postsecondary educational institution in which the student is enrolled. The postsecondary educational institution shall designate the official to whom the student-athlete must disclose these contracts.
(c) A postsecondary educational institution asserting a conflict described in paragraph (a) of this subsection shall disclose the relevant contractual provisions that are in conflict with a provision of the student-athlete's team contract to the student-athlete or the student-athlete's representation.
(6) A team contract of a postsecondary educational institution's athletic program shall not prevent a student-athlete from using the student's name, image, or likeness for a commercial purpose when the student is not engaged in official team activities. The prohibition in this subsection shall apply only to contracts entered into, modified, or renewed on or after January 1, 2023.
(7) The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning and the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges shall adopt bylaws to administer this section.
(8) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2023.
SECTION 4. (1) (a) It is the intent of the Legislature to monitor the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) working group created in May 2019 to examine issues relating to the use of a student's name, image, and likeness and revisit this issue to implement significant findings and recommendations of the NCAA working group in furtherance of the statutory changes implemented by this act.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to continue to develop policies to ensure appropriate protections are in place to avoid exploitation of student-athletes, universities and community colleges.
(c) The Legislature finds and declares that Mississippi's universities and community colleges are institutions not governed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association or the National Junior College Athletic Association. In acknowledgment of this, the Legislature hereby creates the Student-Athlete Name, Image, and Likeness Task Force to study the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL) bylaws, Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) bylaws, state and federal laws, and national athletic association bylaws regarding a student-athlete's use of the athlete's name, image, and likeness for compensation and report policy recommendations to the Legislature.
(2) The Commissioner of the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning shall convene the Student-Athlete Name, Image, and Likeness Task Force. The task force shall include the following members:
(a) One (1) member who is a university athletic coach, to be appointed by the IHL Commissioner;
(b) One (1) member who is a university athletic administrator, to be appointed by the IHL Commissioner;
(c) Four (4) members who are university students who participate in intercollegiate sports, to be appointed by the IHL Commissioner;
(d) One (1) member who is a community college athletic coach, to be appointed by the Mississippi Community College Board Executive Director;
(e) One (1) member who is a community college athletic administrator, to be appointed by the Mississippi Community College Board Executive Director;
(f) Two (2) members who are community college students who participate in intercollegiate sports, to be appointed by the Mississippi Community College Board Executive Director;
(g) One (1) member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor; and
(h) One (1) member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(3) All appointments to the task force shall be completed on or before August 1, 2020.
(4) The task force shall do both of the following:
(a) Review existing Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL Board) bylaws, Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) bylaws, state and federal laws, and national athletic association bylaws regarding a student-athlete's use of the athlete's name, image, and likeness for compensation.
(b) On or before July 1, 2021, submit a report to the IHL Board, the MACJC and the Legislature containing its findings and policy recommendations in connection with its review pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection.
(5) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2022.
SECTION 5. The following shall be codified as Section 93-19-17, Mississippi Code of 1972:
93-19-17. (1) All persons eighteen (18) years of age or older, if not otherwise disqualified, or prohibited by law, shall have the capacity to enter into binding contractual relationships affecting the use of their name, image or likeness while participating in intercollegiate sports as student-athletes. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any contracts entered into prior to the effective date of this act.
(2) In any legal action founded on a student-athlete name, image or likeness contract entered into by a person eighteen (18) years of age or older, the person may sue in his or her own name as an adult and be sued in his or her own name as an adult and be served with process as an adult.
(3) For purposes of this section:
(a) "Intercollegiate sport" is defined in Section 1(a) of this act; and
(b) "Student-athlete" is defined in Section 1(b) of this act.
SECTION 6. Section 73-42-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
73-42-3. In this chapter:
(a) "Agency contract" means an agreement in which a student-athlete authorizes a person to negotiate or solicit on behalf of the student-athlete a professional-sports-services contract, an endorsement contract, or enrollment at any educational institution that offers an athletic scholarship to the student-athlete.
(b) "Athlete agent" means an individual who enters into an agency contract with a student-athlete or, directly or indirectly, recruits, induces or solicits a student-athlete to enter into an agency contract. The term does not include a spouse, parent, sibling, grandparent or guardian of the student-athlete or an individual acting solely on behalf of a professional sports team or professional sports organization. The term includes an individual who represents to the public that the individual is an athlete agent.
(c) "Athletic director" means an individual responsible for administering the overall athletic program of an educational institution or, if an educational institution has separately administered athletic programs for male students and female students, the athletic program for males or the athletic program for females, as appropriate.
(d) "Contact" means a communication, direct or indirect, written or oral, between an athlete agent and a student-athlete, to recruit, induce or solicit the student-athlete to enter into an agency contract.
(e) "Endorsement contract" means (i) an agreement under which a student-athlete is employed or receives consideration or anything of value for the student-athlete's publicity, reputation, following, or fame obtained because of the student-athlete's athletic ability or performance; and (ii) an agreement under which a student-athlete receives consideration or anything of value for the use of the student-athlete's name, image or likeness.
(f) "Intercollegiate sport" means a sport played at the collegiate level for which eligibility requirements for participation by a student-athlete are established by a national association for the promotion or regulation of collegiate athletics.
(g) "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, government; governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality; public corporation, or any other legal or commercial entity.
(h) "Professional-sports-services contract" means an agreement under which an individual is employed or agrees to render services as a player on a professional sports team, with a professional sports organization, or as a professional athlete.
(i) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form.
(j) "Registration" means registration as an athlete agent pursuant to this chapter.
(k) "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
(l) "Student-athlete" means an individual who engages in, is eligible to engage in, or may be eligible in the future to engage in, a sport for a professional sports team or in any intercollegiate sport at any educational institution. If an individual is permanently ineligible to participate in a particular intercollegiate sport, the individual is not a student-athlete for purposes of that sport.
SECTION 7. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2020.