Bill
HB 1917
Arkansas HB 1917 expands NIL opportunities by letting colleges and related entities create, pay for, and license student-athletes’ publicity rights, while exempting such income fro
Note on documents and scope
- The materials you provided contain inconsistent metadata (an initial header saying “Creates new provisions relating to public water supply districts”) and also include two different bill texts and fiscal notes (an Arkansas bill amending the Student‑Athlete Publicity Rights Act and an unrelated Illinois property tax bill). This summary addresses the Arkansas HB 1917 materials actually included in the text (the Arkansas Student‑Athlete Publicity Rights Act amendments and related fiscal note). If you intended a different HB 1917 (e.g., water districts or the Illinois bill), tell me and I will re‑summarize accordingly.
Summary — Arkansas HB 1917 (95th General Assembly, 2025)
Purpose and intent
- To amend the Arkansas Student‑Athlete Publicity Rights Act (Ark. Code § 4‑75‑1301 et seq.) to expand who may create and pay for name/image/likeness (NIL) opportunities, to clarify contractual and employment status rules, and to create a state income‑tax exemption for certain NIL compensation received from institutions of higher education.
Key provisions and changes
- Expanded institutional role: Authorizes an institution of higher education, its supporting foundations, or authorized institutional entities to:
- Identify, create, facilitate, and enable NIL compensation opportunities for student‑athletes;
- Compensate student‑athletes for the commercial use of their publicity rights; and
- Enter into exclusive or nonexclusive license agreements with student‑athletes.
- Charitable organizations: The bill text preserves a provision allowing qualifying §501(c)(3) charitable organizations the right to compensate student‑athletes (text references charities “as it existed on January 1, 2023”).
- Institutional revocation: Permits an institution to revoke or rescind institutional commitments (e.g., grant‑in‑aid or other benefits) to a student‑athlete who receives or agrees to receive compensation that conflicts with terms or conditions of the institution’s contracts, policies, rules, or standards. The institution and its officers/agents are shielded from damages or injunctive relief for such revocation.
- Nonemployee status: Clarifies that receiving compensation under this subchapter for participation in intercollegiate athletics does not make a student‑athlete an employee of the institution, conference, or association for purposes of state law liability or awards (except for wages for work actually performed).
- State income‑tax exemption: Income received by a student‑athlete from an institution of higher education (as NIL compensation or as a percentage of institutional athletic revenue permitted by the governing association/conference) is exempt from Arkansas state income tax. DFA states this exemption is effective for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
- Confidentiality: Personal and financial information in an authorized NIL agreement is confidential and exempt from Arkansas FOIA (Ark. Code § 25‑19‑101 et seq.).
- Contract restrictions and rescission:
- Contracts may not require student‑athletes to promote third‑party products or locations during athletic activities without written institutional authorization.
- Contracts that conflict with institutional policies or that involve conditional performance in competition without institutional authorization are void and unenforceable.
- Student‑athletes may rescind publicity‑rights contracts or representation agreements in certain circumstances (e.g., loss of athletic eligibility or if the representative is not licensed in Arkansas) without return of paid amounts.
- Representation licensing: Agents, athlete agents, financial advisors, or attorneys representing student‑athletes must be licensed as applicable under Arkansas law.
- Athletic associations/conferences: Prohibits associations/conferences from preventing student‑athletes from receiving NIL compensation or penalizing institutions/students for such compensation, except where an institution has expressly agreed to such limits as a condition of membership or as federal law requires.
Who is affected
- Student‑athletes: Gain expanded ability to be compensated and protection from being classified as employees for that compensation; receive a state tax exclusion for qualifying institutional NIL payments.
- Institutions of higher education and their foundations/entities: Gain authority to facilitate and pay NIL compensation and to enforce institutional rules (including revocation of institutional benefits when conflicts arise).
- Athletic associations/conferences: Their ability to limit student NIL activity is constrained unless an institution has agreed to limits.
- Charitable organizations (¶): Retain some rights per bill text; practical effect depends on text interpretation and any legislative floor or enrolled‑act clarifications.
- State finances: General revenue reduced by the income‑tax exemption.
Fiscal and procedural notes
- Fiscal impact (DFA): Estimated FY2026 general revenue reduction of $500,000 (estimate used NCAA Division I figures). Implementation programming cost for Arkansas Integrated Revenue System: ~$4,000. Department will need to update forms, instructions, and staff outreach.
- Effective timing: The DFA indicates the income‑tax exemption applies to tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025.
- Legislative status (Arkansas documents supplied): Introduced Jan. 16, 2025; passed both chambers in April 2025 (actions show passage, enrollment, and notification as Act 839 on 2025‑04‑17).
If you want
- A concise one‑paragraph summary for public distribution;
- A side‑by‑side list of differences between prior law and the bill;
- A version summarizing the Illinois HB1917 (veterans’ homestead exemptions) or information about the water‑district bill noted in your initial header — tell me which and I’ll produce it.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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