A statue of “Bowman” on the University of Kentucky campus honors Kentucky Wildcats. The sculpture is located near the Avenue of Champions opposite Memorial Coliseum. The Patterson Office Tower is in the background. (Kentucky Lantern photo by McKenna Horsley)
College sports in Kentucky often got professional league attention even before name, image and likeness (NIL) laws expanded student-athletes’ opportunities for prosperity in the Bluegrass.
Now more changes are on the horizon for NIL in Kentucky.
Senate Republican Floor Leader Max Wise, of Campbellsville, has called his Senate Bill 3 an attempt to modernize Kentucky’s name, image and likeness laws for student athletes; it comes in response to anti-trust lawsuits against the National Collegiate Athletics Association.
The bill, which would allow schools to directly pay college athletes through revenue sharing, was unanimously approved by the Senate Education Committee Thursday morning. Wise presented it with support from University of Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart and University of Louisville Athletics Director Josh Heird. Student-athletes at both universities often take part in NIL deals.
“It’s a time for us to act, and it’s a time for us to update to make sure that the Commonwealth of Kentucky and our universities are not left behind when it comes to college athletics,” Wise told the committee.
The bill is Kentucky’s response to the outcome of the House v. NCAA settlement, which could change how student-athletes are compensated. A ruling on the settlement is expected in April. If finalized, it would allow schools to opt into a system where universities directly compensate student-athletes and allocate up to $20-22 million annually in revenue-sharing. It also includes a $2.576 billion fund to retroactively compensate athletes.
Wise said the ruling could allow universities to directly compensate student athletes — something not previously covered in Kentucky’s NIL laws.
If Wise’s bill becomes law, universities and affiliated athletic organizations could enter direct compensation agreements with student athletes. Universities could also sublicense a student-athlete’s NIL to third parties, which would allow earning opportunities beyond direct university payments.
The Kentucky General Assembly established the state’s NIL laws in 2022 after Gov. Andy Beshear signed a 2021 executive order that allowed student-athletes to be compensated under NIL agreements. Wise successfully carried a bill last year that made some changes to Kentucky’s NIL law so that the NCAA “may lawfully regulate or restrict a student-athlete’s agreements to receive compensation in exchange for his or her name, image, or likeness.”
Barnhart said that as the settlement takes effect this summer, UK will have more than 500 student-athletes “that are counting on us to give them the best opportunity they can” when it comes to NIL agreements.
“We do know that this may be one step. It might not be the final step,” Barnhart said. “There may be things that come down the road, as things and conversations happen in Washington, D.C., as things happen on our national landscape and as a new entity of college athletics has been created, there may be things that we have to adjust to and but for now, this is the step that is most necessary for us to be able to continue to move forward with our athletic departments and for all of our young people.”
The bill would allow universities to “work alongside student-athletes” navigating NIL agreements, Heird said.
“There’s no doubt that college athletics has changed drastically over the past few years, but we can share its continued popularity if we work together to do what’s best for the majority as opposed to doing what’s best for each of us individually,” Heird said.
Some other states are also making changes to their NIL laws in anticipation of the lawsuit settlement. West Virginia and Ohio are among those who have considered legislation ahead of the ruling.
While the committee’s vote was unanimous, some senators lamented that they wished college athletics was more focused on team — like it was in the old days. Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Paducah, said NIL and the transfer portal “absolutely destroyed college sports.”
“I’ve lost interest in college sports because of it, and it’s difficult for me to vote yes for this, and I regret the vote that I made, but in saying that, I also know that Kentucky has to compete, and I know that there’s millions and millions of dollars involved in this investment and return,” Carroll said.