Florida Rep Kionne McGhee Proposes Bill Similar to Fair Pay to Play Act for 2020

Florida state representative Kionne McGhee filed a bill Monday that would allow NCAA athletes in the state to receive compensation for use of their name and likeness.

According to Charlotte Carroll of Sports Illustrated, House Bill 251 will go into effect July 1 if passed and states the following:

"Authorizes students participating in intercollegiate athletics to receive specified compensation; provides requirements for specified students, postsecondary educational institutions, certain organizations, & specified representatives; & creates Florida College System Athlete Name, Image, & Likeness Task Force."

McGhee filed the bill after California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Fair Pay to Play Act, which will make it legal for college athletes in California to sign agents and land sponsorship deals beginning Jan. 1, 2023.

After Newsom signed the act Monday, the NCAA released a statement in which it expressed concern about being able to maintain a level playing field across all member schools: "As more states consider their own specific legislation related to this topic, it is clear that a patchwork of different laws from different states will make unattainable the goal of providing a fair and level playing field for 1,100 campuses and nearly half a million student-athletes nationwide."

Once the Fair Pay to Play Act goes live in California, the NCAA member schools in California could have a massive recruiting advantage over schools in states where athletes cannot be compensated for their name and likeness.

In a letter sent to Newsom before he signed the bill into law, the NCAA said the Fair Pay to Play Act would result in California schools "eventually being unable to compete in NCAA competitions." The same would conceivably be true of Florida schools if McGhee's bill passes.

That would leave big-time programs such as USC, UCLA, Stanford, Florida, Florida State and Miami on the outside looking in.

The NCAA has expressed a desire to "make adjustments to NCAA name, image and likeness rules that are both realistic in modern society and tied to higher education."