SB 2517 Mississippi Senate · 2025 Regular Session

"MS Intercollegiate Athletics Compensation Rights Act" and "Uniform Athletes Agent Act"; bring forward.

SB 2517 allows Mississippi colleges to share athletics-related revenue with student-athletes or pay them for using their name, image, or likeness (publicity rights). It defines key terms like "student-athlete" and "athletics-related revenue" (including ticket sales, media rights, and NCAA distributions). The bill requires student-athletes to disclose third-party publicity deals to their school, permits schools to set reasonable limits on such activities, and lets athletes terminate agreements if they transfer. It directly affects student-athletes, colleges, and third-party agents, while protecting schools' branding rights. The law is now effective after Governor approval on April 23, 2025.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2025

Senate Passage

Feb 2025

House Passage

Mar 2025

Signed into Law

Apr 2025

Introduced Feb 12, 2025 Signed Apr 23, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

As Passed the upper → Current version · 7 edits

MODERATE

This bill was amended to shift from a 'bring forward for possible amendment' status to a final version sent to the Governor, with substantive changes to student-athlete compensation and athletics agent regulations. The bill now explicitly allows institutions to share revenue with student-athletes and adds new definitions for revenue sharing and financial aid agreements. It also expands protections for student-athletes who have announced transfer intentions and strengthens enforcement mechanisms for athletics agents.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from a preliminary 'bring forward' status to a finalized version with new substantive provisions allowing revenue sharing between institutions and student-athletes, and adding new definitions and enforcement provisions.

SCOPE

Changed bill status from 'As Passed the Senate' to 'As Sent to Governor', indicating the bill has completed the legislative process and is ready for executive action.

Removed the 'Uniform Athlete Agents Act' sections (73-42-3 through 73-42-39) that were previously included in the 'bring forward' version, indicating these sections were not included in the final version sent to the Governor.

DEFINITION

Added new definitions for 'Athletics financial aid agreement', 'Athletics-related revenue', and 'Revenue sharing agreement' to clarify what constitutes compensable arrangements between institutions and student-athletes.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded eligibility for compensation to include student-athletes who have given notice of intent to transfer, ensuring they are protected during the transfer process.

FISCAL

Added explicit language allowing postsecondary educational institutions to share a portion of athletics-related revenue with student-athletes or compensate them for publicity rights.

ENFORCEMENT

Strengthened enforcement provisions by adding civil liability for violations, including treble damages (three times the amount given or promised) and expanded jurisdiction for lawsuits.

REQUIREMENT

Added requirements for student-athletes to disclose athletics financial aid agreements to designated officials before entering into compensation arrangements.

As Introduced → As Passed the upper · 9 edits

MAJOR

This bill amends Mississippi's Intercollegiate Athletics Compensation Rights Act and Uniform Athlete Agents Act to allow student-athletes to earn compensation for their publicity rights (name, image, likeness) while maintaining strict rules about who can represent them and how agreements are handled. The changes clarify definitions, establish registration requirements for athlete agents, create exemptions for publicity rights agreements from public records laws, and add restrictions on agents contacting students and prohibited endorsements.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on regulating athlete agents and student-athlete publicity rights, but it significantly clarifies and expands the regulatory framework for athlete agents, including new registration requirements, disclosure obligations, and prohibited activities.

DEFINITION

Updated definitions to clarify terms like 'compensation', 'publicity rights', 'student-athlete', and 'third party' to distinguish between legitimate financial aid and compensable publicity rights.

REQUIREMENT

Added requirements for athlete agents to register with the Secretary of State, submit background checks, and maintain records for five years.

Required athlete agents to notify educational institutions within 72 hours of entering into an agency contract and established a 14-day cancellation window for student-athletes.

Required agency contracts to include conspicuous warnings to student-athletes about potential eligibility consequences and notification requirements.

ENFORCEMENT

Established penalties for unregistered agents, including felony charges for prohibited activities, and created a civil penalty system with fines up to $25,000.

EXEMPTIONS

Exempted student-athlete publicity rights agreements from the Mississippi Public Records Act to protect student privacy.

ELIGIBILITY

Prohibited student-athletes from entering agreements with brands related to gambling, alcohol, tobacco, and other products inconsistent with educational values.

FISCAL

Clarified that public institutions cannot use state funds to compensate student-athletes for publicity rights.

TECHNICAL

Removed page numbering and formatting artifacts from the original bill text while preserving all substantive provisions.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 11, 2025 · House Mar 10, 2025

How they voted

51–0

Passed

Total votes 51

Feb 11, 2025

D Democratic16

16 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican35

35 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Apr 23, 2025

Signed into law

Approved by Governor

executive

Apr 1, 2025

Lower · Passed

Conference Report Adopted

lower

Mar 28, 2025

Lower · Passed

Conference Report Filed

lower

Mar 10, 2025

Lower · Passed

Passed As Amended

lower

Mar 10, 2025

Lower · Passed

Amended

lower

Mar 4, 2025

Lower · Passed

Title Suff Do Pass As Amended

lower

Feb 14, 2025

Committee

Referred To Universities and Colleges;Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency

lower

Feb 12, 2025

Introduced

Transmitted To House

upper

Feb 11, 2025

Upper · Passed

Passed

upper

Jan 30, 2025

Upper · Passed

Title Suff Do Pass

upper

Jan 20, 2025

Committee

Referred To Universities and Colleges

upper

0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

What changed between versions

How they voted

Actions timeline

Sponsors