NC Education Code · Regulation
Title 16 — root / Chapter 06 — 16 NCAC 06E .0211
Plain English summary
This regulation establishes the framework for student-athletes in North Carolina interscholastic athletics to enter Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) agreements, setting out definitions, permissible uses, disclosure requirements, prohibited content categories, and restrictions on school personnel involvement. Students must disclose proposed agreements to school administrators at least 10 business days before execution and must complete an NFHS NIL education course prior to signing. The rule prohibits promotion of certain products and services and bars school employees and booster club representatives from facilitating or using NIL agreements as recruiting tools.
Key requirements
- A student participating in interscholastic athletics may enter an NIL agreement subject to the following restrictions: The NIL agreement shall not condition the receipt, type, or extent of any compensation on the extent or quality of the student's athletic performance.
- If the student is under 18 years of age, the student's parent or legal guardian shall be a party to the NIL agreement.
- The NIL agreement shall hold the following parties harmless from any liability related to, or arising from the NIL agreement: The governing body of the PSU in which the student is enrolled, as well as its officers and employees; Any administering organization with which the PSU is affiliated, as well as its officers and employees; The State Board of Education and the Department of Public Instruction, as well as their officers and employees.
- No later than 10 business days prior to the execution of a proposed NIL agreement or an amendment to an existing NIL agreement, the student shall provide a complete and unredacted copy of the proposed NIL agreement or amendment to school administrators.
- No later than five business days after the execution or amendment of the NIL agreement, the student shall provide a complete and unredacted copy of the executed NIL agreement or amendment to school administrators.
- No later than 10 business days prior to a student's entry into an NIL agreement, the student shall complete the NIL education course offered by the NFHS.
- If the student is under 18 years of age, the student's parent or legal guardian shall also complete the course.
- Those persons required to complete the course shall provide school administrators with a certificate of completion from the NFHS.
- No student engaged in an NIL agreement-related activity shall make any reference to a school, PSU, conference, or administering organization.
- No student engaged in an NIL agreement-related activity shall receive compensation for the use of intellectual property of any school, PSU, conference, administering organization, or the NFHS.
- No student engaged in an NIL agreement-related activity shall appear in the uniform of the student's school or the school's sports team, or otherwise display the intellectual property of any school, PSU, conference, administering organization, or the NFHS.
- No student shall endorse or promote the goods or services of any third-party entity with which the student has entered an NIL agreement during interscholastic athletic competition or other school-based activities or events.
- No student participating in interscholastic athletics shall enter into an NIL agreement or otherwise use the student's name, image, or likeness to promote any of the following: An adult establishment or adult entertainment services; Alcohol or alcoholic products; Tobacco, vaping or other electronic smoking devices, or other nicotine products; Cannabis or cannabis products; Controlled substances; Opioids or prescription pharmaceuticals; Weapons, firearms, or ammunition; Casinos or gambling, including sports betting; Activities that would disrupt the operations of a school or PSU.
- The athletic director of a participating school shall submit a current copy of any executed or amended NIL agreement involving a student at the school to any administering organizations of which the student's school is a member within 30 days of the disclosure of the executed or amended NIL agreement by the student.
- The administering organization shall maintain accurate records of all NIL agreements received and provide a summary report of all NIL agreements to the State Board of Education no later than June 30 of each year.
- No athletic director, coach, other employee of a PSU, representative of an athletic booster club, or representative of an NIL collective shall use the promise of an NIL agreement to recruit a student to attend a specific participating school or participate in a specific sport.
- No athletic director, coach, other employee of a PSU, representative of an athletic booster club, or representative of an NIL collective shall act as a student's agent or marketing representative or otherwise facilitate an NIL agreement between a student and a third party.
- This Rule shall apply to any NIL agreement that a student or the student's parent or legal guardian execute during the time the student is enrolled in a PSU, even if the benefits of said agreement do not accrue to the student or an immediate family member of the student until after the student has graduated.
Affected parties
- Student-athletes participating in interscholastic athletics
- Parents and legal guardians of minor student-athletes
- School principals
- Athletic directors
- Head coaches
- Local superintendents
- PSU governing bodies and their officers and employees
- Administering organizations affiliated with PSUs
- State Board of Education
- Department of Public Instruction
- Athletic booster club representatives
- NIL collective representatives