High School Status
Under Consideration
High School Governing Body
NIL State Law
Status
What We Discovered
Current Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) guidelines do not permit high school athletes to profit from Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). However, the MHSAA administration is considering potential changes to these regulations and may make decisions during its annual handbook review process.
Summary
College
NIL Law: House Bill 5217
Abstract | Full Law | Passed: 12/31/20 | Effective: 12/31/22
Collegiate athletes in Michigan are able to monetize their NIL. Key points of HB 5217 prohibits institutions, conferences or governing bodies from revoking a student-athlete’s scholarships or preventing their participation in athletics for seeking NIL opportunities. A student-athlete must disclose an NIL deal to their institution at least a week in advance of committing to the contract and may not enter into an apparel NIL contract if it requires the student to display the sponsor’s apparel or advertise for them during official team activities.
Bylaws | Coaches Handbook
Excerpt | VIII. Eligibility Rules for Athletes
B. AMATEURISM
Eligibility for interscholastic athletics at MHSAA member schools is limited to amateurs, meaning those student-athletes who have not received gifts of material or money and have not received other valuable considerations, including special considerations for loans, because of athletic performance or potential. Treatment of or privileges received by athletes or their families that are not provided or available to all students violate the principles of amateurism in inter- scholastic athletics. Gifts or loans to family members, based on the student’s athletic performance or potential, are treated as gifts or loans to the student and violate that student’s amateur status.
Students cannot receive money or other valuable consideration for participating in MHSAA sponsored sports or offi- ciating in interscholastic athletic contests, except as allowed by Handbook interpretations 136-149; or have signed a professional athletic contract.
C. AWARDS
1. A student may accept, for participation in athletics, symbolic or merchandise awards such as trophies, medals or plaques which do not have a fair market value or cost in excess of $40.
2. Awards for athletic participation in the form of cash, merchandise certificates, or any other negotiable document are never allowed.
3. Banquets, luncheons, dinners, non-competitive trips, and fees or admissions to be a spectator at events, if accepted “in kind,” are permitted.
4.Prizes or awards to team members who raise the most money through team fundraising efforts, which involve athletes or their parents only, are subject to awards limits: No cash or negotiable certificates are allowed; max- imum value of $40. Fundraising that involves all students in the school are not subject to this restriction. Prizes, cash or merchandise awards to students from third party fund raising organizations are not allowed unless the fund raising activity is open to other students in the school, not just team members.
5. Acceptance of game balls from contests in which students participated does not violate the Awards Regulation.
6. Fundraising by team members to purchase athletic equipment, clothing, shoes or other items specific to that team membership is allowable as long as the item(s) remains a part of the school athletic department inventory.
7. Players may purchase at fair (current) market value and keep equipment such as shoes, gloves, jerseys, jackets and award sweaters without incurring a loss of eligibility. Personal wear items such as caps, shoes, and swim- suits may have a value of zero at the end of the season.