Utah could become one of the first states to make college athletes’ name, image and likeness (NIL) contracts public after a ruling Thursday by the State Records Committee.
The Deseret News appealed to the committee after it was denied requests for NIL contracts from five local Division I schools — Utah, Utah State, Weber State, Utah Valley and Southern Utah. The records committee ruled that universities must grant requests for NIL contracts pursuant to Utah’s Government Records Access and Management Act, the state’s public records law.
“It’s a big win for transparency in college athletics,” Jeff Hunt, attorney for the Deseret News, told The Salt Lake Tribune. “With this ruling, the public will have a much better understanding of how much money is flowing to college student-athletes, who is paying them, and how the universities are monitoring compliance with NCAA eligibility rules.”
Requests for comment made by The Tribune to four of the five aforementioned universities were not immediately returned.
Hunt said making the contracts public would help ensure institutions are following both NIL and Title IX rules.
“The compliance piece is critical,” Hunt said. “Given the enormous dollars involved, the public has a compelling interest in making sure that its public colleges are ensuring compliance with the applicable rules and regulations.”
Hunt added that the ruling will allow the public to know to what extent its female athletes are benefitting — or getting left behind by — NIL deals.
“This will also shed light on the demographics of the students and sports involved in these deals,” Hunt said. “How many involve female student-athletes versus male athletes, and what are the Title IX implications?”
The universities have the opportunity to appeal the ruling. USU plans to do so.
“The State Records Committee’s ruling is in error and contrary to the laws that protect student privacy,” a USU spokesperson told The Tribune in a statement. “Once the Committee issues its final written decision, USU will determine its next steps, including an appeal.”
If the ruling stands, however, it appears to be the first of its kind since the NIL rules went into effect in July 2021.
Publications in other states have sued universities for NIL contracts only to be denied on the basis of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which protects a student’s educational records. Schools in Utah used that argument as well when denying requests from the Deseret News.
David Hudson fought for records from the University of Georgia on behalf of the Banner-Herald and argued that NIL deals are not protected under FERPA, using a Georgia Supreme Court ruling from 1988 as evidence. The case was eventually settled, and the newspaper received redacted versions of the records that did not include the student-athlete’s names.
“An NIL contract is not an academic record,” Hudson told The Tribune. “It’s a work-related record or income-related record. An NIL contract has nothing to do with academic performance.”
Hudson was in favor of the Utah State Record Committee’s ruling, and said he hopes other states follow suit.
“It’s better that people come to the correct conclusion later than not at all,” Hudson said. “My hope would be that the precedent of Utah would have influence on any other colleges and universities faced with this issue, as well as on any court that faces the issue.”
College athletes in Utah and across the country have been signing contracts to profit off their name, image and likeness since the NCAA loosened its rules on the issue in July 2021. Some star athletes have reportedly earned millions, though the exact amounts have not been required to be made public.
Before adopting its NIL policy, the NCAA restricted students from being compensated as amateur athletes. Since the change, student-athletes all over the country have cashed in on deals from big companies like Gatorade and partnerships with small businesses alike.
While it has been a boon for athletes, some university administrators and lawmakers have called for more regulation.
“There needs to be a federal standard,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said during a congressional hearing on NIL this week. “... Between the [transfer] portal and NIL, college football is in absolute chaos. And we need to fix it. And national legislation is the only way to fix it.”