Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order Monday which would allow Ohio college athletes to earn money from their name, image and likeness.
Credit: Randy Ludlow via TNS
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order Monday which would allow Ohio college athletes to earn money from their name, image and likeness.
After what started as a bipartisan effort to create NIL legislation in Ohio was flipped on its head with the introduction of a transgender athlete ban Thursday, DeWine sent the original bill — which passed the Ohio Senate in a unanimous vote June 16 — into law with an executive order Monday.
“We needed a clean bill in order to get this done by July 1,” Sen. Niraj Antani said Monday. “After that happened, we needed some leadership and that’s what the Governor and Lt. Governor provided today.”
Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said he was confused when the amendment was added to the original bill and reached out to DeWine for help on the matter.
“This is not my world, so I just learned it on the fly,” Smith said Monday. “Fortunately we have great relationships with the lieutenant governor, the governor, and a number of different people. So, we made the call and asked for help from the experts who operate this space.”
DeWine becomes the second U.S. governor to use an executive order to implement NIL legislature in his state — joining Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear who instituted the change Thursday.
With the executive order, the bill will pass into law just three days before Antani’s (R-Miamisburg) target date of July 1 — the same day that Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, New Mexico, Texas and Kentucky will implement their own NIL legislation.
