The law
Oregon's college NIL law is ORS 702.200 and 702.205 (status: in force). Everything on this page is taken from the enacted text on the legislature's own site, linked under Sources, read on October 21, 2026.
What it says
| Question | What the statute says | Section or source |
|---|---|---|
| Who is covered | The rights belong to a student athlete enrolled in a "post-secondary institution of education", defined as the seven public universities listed in ORS 352.002 (University of Oregon, Oregon State, Portland State, Oregon Tech, Western Oregon, Southern Oregon, Eastern Oregon) and Oregon-based, generally accredited private institutions. Community colleges are not in the definition. "Athletic reputation" has been covered alongside name, image and likeness since 2024-03-20 | 702.200(1)(b), (c); ORS 352.002 |
| Disclosure to the school | An athlete who enters an NIL contract discloses it to the official the school designates, "for the sole purpose of demonstrating compliance" with the team-rule and school-contract limits, as a team member or, if not yet one, when seeking to become one. No number of days is set. If the school asserts a conflict, it names the specific rules or terms to the athlete or the athlete's representative | 702.200(4)(b), (c) |
| Banned categories | Not addressed. The statute lists no barred products or industries; a school may establish and enforce a conduct code that applies to all students | 702.200(5) |
| Conflicts with team contracts | An athlete may not enter an NIL contract whose terms conflict with team rules or with a contract between the school and a third party. Team rules and school contracts may not stop NIL pay when the athlete is not engaged in official team activities, including an advertisement created outside team activities that is shown at any time | 702.200(4)(a) |
| School and coach involvement | An association may not prohibit a school from identifying, facilitating, enabling or supporting NIL opportunities for its current athletes. A school and its employees are not liable for damages from decisions routinely taken in intercollegiate sports or from facilitating NIL opportunities. Separately, an athlete agent who represented a post-secondary institution in the preceding four years may not represent an enrolled student athlete. Coaches are not named | 702.200(7), (8); 702.027(7) |
| Direct pay from the school | Since 2025-06-26 a post-secondary institution "may compensate a student athlete or prospective student athlete" for NIL or athletic reputation. The definition of economic rights still says the athlete has no right to receive pay from a school, so pay is allowed, not owed. No NIL pay, from anyone, may be conditioned on athletic performance; a payer may condition pay on attendance at a particular school | 702.200(1)(b)(B), (2), (6)(a), (6)(b) |
| Agents and attorneys | Schools and associations may not restrict an athlete from contracting with and retaining professional representation or an athlete agent. Athlete agents register with the Oregon Department of Education ($250 first application, $150 renewal, valid two years). Where ORS 702.200 applies, the agency contract does not carry the boxed statutory warning (which begins "you may lose your eligibility") or the separate eligibility acknowledgement. No fee cap; the contract states the fee and how it is calculated. The athlete may cancel within 14 days, and agent and athlete notify the athletic director within 72 hours or before the next event | 702.200(1)(b)(A), (3)(a); 702.012; 702.023; 702.047(2)(a), (3), (6); 702.052; 702.054 |
| High school and minors | ORS 702.200 covers students enrolled at post-secondary institutions only. The agent act also covers interscholastic athletes, and for a minor the parent or guardian signs the agency contract and may cancel it | 702.200(1)(b); 702.005(18); 702.047(8); 702.052(1) |
| Financial literacy | Not addressed | None |
| Scholarship protection | A school or association may not impose an eligibility requirement on a scholarship or grant that requires an athlete to refrain from earning NIL pay or retaining representation | 702.200(3)(a)(D) |
| Confidentiality of contracts | Any contract, proposed contract or related documentation in a school's possession that relates to an athlete's economic rights is confidential and exempt from public disclosure under ORS 192.311 to 192.478 (since 2025-06-26) | 702.200(4)(d) |
| NCAA and conference penalties | Schools and associations may not prohibit, prevent, restrict, penalize or retaliate against an athlete for exercising economic rights, bench the athlete, or bar third-party food, drink, lodging, medical expenses or insurance as NIL pay. An association may not prevent a school or athlete from competing, accept a complaint, open an investigation or take other adverse action over an alleged violation of its NIL rules, or have member schools do so | 702.200(3)(a), (b) |
| Remedies and enforcement | ORS 702.200 names no enforcing agency and no private right of action; it shields schools and employees from damages for routine athletics decisions. For agents, a school or athlete may sue for damages and fees, the Department of Education may impose a civil penalty up to $25,000, and some violations are a Class A misdemeanor or Class C felony | 702.200(8); 702.057; 702.991; 702.994 |
| Employee status | Not addressed | None |
How Oregon's law changed, 2021 to 2025
- 2021. SB 5 took effect on signing, 2021-06-29, and applies to contracts entered into or renewed on or after 2021-07-01 (Oregon Laws 2021, chapter 422, section 5). It barred schools and associations from blocking NIL pay or representation, and it also barred schools and associations from paying athletes for NIL.
- 2022. SB 1505 added the royalty rule for jerseys, video games and trading cards, effective 2022-07-01.
- 2024. HB 4119, effective 2024-03-20, added "athletic reputation", the bar on association complaints and investigations, the bar on performance-based pay, the rule that a school may facilitate NIL opportunities, and the damages shield for schools and employees. Its changes to ORS 702.200 apply to actions taken on or after 2021-06-29 (chapter 15, section 3).
- 2025. HB 3694, signed and effective 2025-06-26, about three weeks after the House settlement was approved on 2025-06-06, reversed the 2021 ban: schools may now pay athletes and recruits for NIL. It also made school-held NIL contracts confidential and narrowed the purpose of disclosure to showing compliance.
Royalties for jerseys, video games and trading cards
ORS 702.205 is unusual among state NIL laws. A person that produces an intercollegiate sports team jersey, video game or trading card for profit "shall make a royalty payment to each student athlete" whose name, image, likeness or athletic reputation it uses. The rule took effect 2022-07-01; the 2024 addition of "athletic reputation" applies to contracts entered into on or after 2024-03-20 (chapter 15, section 3(2)). The statute does not set the amount, timing or remedy.
Agents in Oregon
Oregon's agent law, ORS 702.005 to 702.065, is the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act, run by the Oregon Department of Education rather than the Secretary of State. Registration is required to act as an athlete agent (702.012), the agent gives the athletic director written notice before contacting an athlete (702.029), and acting as an agent without registration is a Class A misdemeanor (702.991(4)). For NIL contracts, the agency contract skips the boxed eligibility warning and the separate eligibility acknowledgement that other agency contracts carry (702.047(3), (6)); the 14-day cancellation right (702.052) and the 72-hour notice to the athletic director (702.054) still apply.
Bills that did not pass
SB 1193 (2025) would have let a post-secondary institution pay athletes for NIL. The Senate Education Committee sent it to Rules without recommendation on 2025-04-14; Rules held a public hearing on 2025-06-16, and it was still in committee when the session adjourned on 2025-06-27. HB 3694, which passed the House on 2025-04-10 and, after a conference committee, both chambers by 2025-06-16, carried the same change into law. No NIL measure was filed in the 2025 special session or the 2026 session (Oregon Legislature measure data, checked 2026-10-21).
How it changed
| Act | What it did | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| SB 5 (2021), Oregon Laws 2021, chapter 422 | enacted the NIL section later codified as ORS 702.200: schools and associations may not restrict NIL pay or representation, disclosure to the school, team-contract conflicts, no NIL pay from schools or associations, a four-year bar on agents who had represented a school; amended the athlete-agent act (ORS 702.005, 702.027, 702.047); applies to contracts entered into or renewed on or after 2021-07-01 | 2021-06-29 |
| SB 1505 (2022), Oregon Laws 2022, chapter 20 | created the royalty rule for intercollegiate team jerseys, video games and trading cards (ORS 702.205) and amended the agent-act definitions in ORS 702.005 | 2022-07-01 |
| HB 4119 (2024), Oregon Laws 2024, chapter 15 | added "athletic reputation"; limited the four-year bar to athlete agents and extended it to agents formerly employed by a school; barred associations from accepting complaints, opening investigations or taking adverse action over NIL; barred associations from stopping schools from facilitating NIL; barred performance-based NIL pay and allowed pay conditioned on attendance; shielded schools and employees from damages; the ORS 702.200 changes apply to actions on or after 2021-06-29 | 2024-03-20 |
| HB 3694 (2025), Oregon Laws 2025, chapter 448 | let schools pay athletes and prospective athletes for NIL (702.200(2)); repealed the bar on school and association pay and the four-year agent bar inside 702.200; limited disclosure to showing compliance; made NIL contracts held by a school confidential and exempt from public records law (702.200(4)(d)) | 2025-06-26 |
Federal law
As of 2026-10-21, S. 4668 (Protect College Sports Act) passed the Senate 77-22 on 2026-09-28 and has been held at the House desk since 2026-10-05 with no House action; it is not law. If enacted as passed, § 121(a)(2) covers state laws that govern, regulate or invalidate school, conference or association rules on NIL compensation, which on its text describes ORS 702.200(3) and (7), Oregon's bars on association investigations and penalties. School pay under 702.200(2) matches § 101(c), subject to the revenue share cap in § 114, but 702.200(2) also lets a school pay a prospective student athlete, while § 114(a)(1)(C) would bar a school from paying a prospective student athlete for any purpose before enrollment (apart from limited development-camp costs). Another difference is in the text: ORS 702.200(6)(b) lets any payer condition NIL pay on attendance at a particular school, while the new SPARTA § 10(3)(F) in § 102 would make an endorsement contract voidable unless it states pay is not conditioned on enrolling, except for a contract made after enrollment with the school, a conference, an associated entity or a collective affiliated with the school. § 121(b) keeps "Uniform Athlete Agent Acts" and state contract and privacy law except where they conflict; Oregon's agent law calls itself the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act (ORS 702.001). § 121 does not name state public-records exemptions such as 702.200(4)(d) or royalty rules such as 702.205. The bill would require Division I athletes to report deals over $600 to the school and the association or its designated entity within 5 days of signing (§ 101(b)(1), (5)) and would cap an agent's fee on an endorsement contract at 5% (§ 102, new SPARTA § 3(a)(5)).
What sits on top of it
- Division I reporting. Third-party deals of $600 or more go to NIL Go within five business days, whatever the state's own rule (NIL Go, reporting a deal, level by level).
- Your school. A school can set a stricter policy than the statute, and most set the disclosure process.
- Agents. Oregon's athlete-agent rules are on the state-by-state registration table.
- High school. High school NIL in Oregon is set by the state's athletic association, not this statute.
- Taxes. NIL taxes in plain words.
How Leave fits
In Leave, every deal thread carries a rules summary for the athlete's state and level, and keeps the contract, its dates and the disclosure deadline that applies. It is a summary, not a ruling; the school and the statute decide. Leave is software, not an agent, and takes 0% of any deal. You decide, you send.
Questions about college NIL law in Oregon
What is Oregon's NIL law in 2026?
ORS 702.200, enacted by SB 5 (in force 2021-06-29) and amended by HB 4119 (2024-03-20) and HB 3694 (2025-06-26), plus ORS 702.205 on royalties, added by SB 1505 (2022-07-01). It lets Oregon public universities and accredited private colleges pay athletes for NIL, bars the NCAA and conferences from investigating or penalizing schools or athletes over NIL, requires disclosure of NIL contracts to the school, and makes those contracts confidential.
Can Oregon colleges pay athletes directly?
Yes, under state law since 2025-06-26. ORS 702.200(2) says a post-secondary institution of education may compensate a student athlete or prospective student athlete for use of their name, image, likeness or athletic reputation. HB 3694 also repealed the 2021 rule that barred schools and associations from paying athletes. The statute still says athletes have no right to receive school pay, and no NIL pay may be tied to athletic performance (702.200(6)(a)).
Do I have to tell my school about an NIL deal in Oregon?
ORS 702.200(4)(b) says an athlete who enters an NIL contract discloses it to the school official the school designates, for the sole purpose of showing it does not conflict with team rules or the school's own contracts. It sets no number of days. Separately, Division I athletes report deals of $600 or more through NIL Go within five business days under NCAA Bylaw 22.2.2; that is an NCAA rule, not Oregon law.
Does Oregon require an NIL agent to be licensed?
Oregon requires athlete agents to register with the Oregon Department of Education (ORS 702.012); the fee is $250 for a first application and $150 to renew, and registration lasts two years (ORS 702.023, 702.012(9)). The athlete may cancel an agency contract within 14 days (ORS 702.052). Oregon sets no cap on agent fees; the agency contract states the amount and how it is calculated (ORS 702.047(2)(a)).
Are NIL contracts public records in Oregon?
No. Since 2025-06-26, ORS 702.200(4)(d) says any contract, proposed contract or related documentation a school holds that relates to an athlete's NIL rights is confidential and exempt from public disclosure under Oregon's public records law, ORS 192.311 to 192.478.
Do video games and trading cards owe Oregon college athletes royalties?
ORS 702.205 says a person that produces an intercollegiate team jersey, video game or trading card for profit makes a royalty payment to each student athlete whose name, image, likeness or athletic reputation it uses. It sets no rate and names no enforcing agency.
Be your own agent. Leave.
