Mississippi high school NIL bill doesn't make it out of House committee

A landmark NIL bill in the state of Mississippi that would’ve given high school athletes the opportunity to earn money from their name, image and likeness is dead.

House Bill 1400 failed to make it out of the state house’s committee last week, ending the chances of it later making it into law. Titled the “Mississippi High School Student-Athlete NIL Protection Act,” it would have created a framework allowing high school student-athletes to earn compensation for their NIL with specific guidelines.

SUBSCRIBE to the On3 NIL and Sports Business Newsletter

The Mississippi High School Athletics Association — the state’s governing body for high school sports — spoke out in strong opposition to the bill, as did multiple coaches after it was introduced January 16.

“While it is not denied, it does not let them take full advantage of their athletic ability because we don’t want it to get into a pay-for-play type situation, like what is going on in the NCAA… We need to keep it where it is for as long as we can for the future of high school athletics,” MHSAA executive director Rickey Neaves told WLBT3-TV last week.

The bill, if passed, would have allowed student-athletes to get paid up to $10,000 directly. Anything more would be required to be placed in a trust that could not be withdrawn until after the student turns 18 or graduates.

Mississippi is one of 14 states in the U.S. that doesn’t currently allow high school athletes to profit of their name, image and likeness.

“I’m completely against it, personally, because once you let the genie out of the bottle, it’s hard to put it back in there,” Neaves added. “That’s what the NCAA is experiencing right now… High school athletics and activities right now are the last pure form of athletics and activities that we have.”

Ohio fighting back against NIL for high school athletes

Elsewhere around the country, lawmakers in Ohio are attempting to claw back the opportunity for high school athletes to earn NIL money. According to NBC-4 news, House Bill 661, introduced by Reps. Adam Bird (R-New Richmond) and Mike Odioso (R-Cincinnati), would reverse a November vote by the Ohio High School Athletic Association that permits students to make money from their NIL through appearances, licensing, social media, endorsements and the use of branding based on their public recognition.

The OHSAA’s new NIL bylaws — which received support from 447 Ohio schools, while 121 voted against them and 247 abstained — came after a lawsuit brought by Jasmine Brown on behalf of her son, Jamier Brown, a 5-star wide receiver recruit, claiming that Jamier had lost more than $100,000 in potential NIL deals because of OHSAA’s ban.