The law
Washington has no general college NIL statute. The narrower laws that touch NIL are RCW 42.52.807 (ethics carve-out) and RCW 19.225 (Uniform Athlete Agents Act). Rows drawn from a statute come from the enacted text on the legislature's own site; rows drawn from a school or board policy name that policy. Every source is linked under Sources, read on October 21, 2026.
What it says
| Question | What applies | Section or source |
|---|---|---|
| Who is covered | There is no general NIL statute. RCW 42.52.807 covers employees of a "state institution of higher education" using public resources for student athletes. The agent act covers any "student athlete", defined as anyone eligible to attend an educational institution who plays or may play an interscholastic or intercollegiate sport, at public or private schools from elementary school to university | 42.52.807; 19.225.010(5), (17) |
| Disclosure to the school | Not addressed for NIL deals; no Washington statute requires an athlete to report a deal to the school. In practice the school's own policy sets reporting, and Division I athletes report deals of $600 or more through NIL Go within five business days under NCAA Bylaw 22.2.2. The agent act separately requires the athlete and the agent to tell the athletic director at least 72 hours before entering an agency contract and again within 72 hours after (or before the next event) | 19.225.070(2), (3) |
| Banned categories | Not addressed. No Washington statute bars any product or industry from NIL deals; school policy and conference rules fill the gap | None |
| Conflicts with team contracts | Not addressed. Conflicts with a school's sponsorship or team rules are left to school policy | None |
| School and coach involvement | The state ethics law "does not prohibit" a state university employee from using public resources, including personnel, money and property, to benefit athletes in "the advising, facilitation, acknowledgment, or education" related to NIL, if the resources are under that employee's control or direction. The use must follow the rules of "the national, nonprofit member organization responsible for oversight of college sports". The agent act's definition of a paid adviser leaves out a school employee "acting exclusively as an employee of the institution for the benefit of the institution" | 42.52.807; 19.225.010(2)(a)(ii)(A) |
| Direct pay from the school | Not addressed. No Washington statute allows or bars a school paying athletes for NIL. HB 2352 (2024), which would have required revenue-based payments to athletes at public four-year schools, did not pass | None |
| Agents and attorneys | Washington does not register athlete agents. An agent delivers a signed athlete agent disclosure form to the athlete on the day of first contact (within 7 days if the athlete started the contact); an agency contract that results from skipping it is void. An "agency contract" includes one to negotiate an endorsement contract. The contract states the fee, services and duration, carries a boldface eligibility warning, and may be cancelled within 14 days. Licensed professionals such as attorneys are not athlete agents unless they also recruit or solicit, procure pro employment, or charge athletes differently | 19.225.010(1), (2)(b), (6); 19.225.030; 19.225.040; 19.225.060; 19.225.080 |
| High school and minors | No NIL statute covers high school athletes. The agent act covers interscholastic athletes too; for a minor, the parent or guardian signs the agency contract and may cancel it | 19.225.010(17); 19.225.060(7); 19.225.080(1) |
| Financial literacy | Not addressed as a requirement. RCW 42.52.807 permits state university staff to provide NIL "education" using public resources but does not require it | 42.52.807 |
| Scholarship protection | Not addressed | None |
| Confidentiality of contracts | Not addressed. The Public Records Act, chapter 42.56 RCW, has no exemption that names NIL contracts (current text checked 2026-10-21). ESSB 5942 (2022), which would have exempted athletes' NIL disclosures from the Act, did not pass | chapter 42.56 RCW |
| NCAA and conference penalties | Not addressed. Washington has no statute barring NCAA or conference action over NIL; RCW 42.52.807 instead requires state university staff help to follow the national organization's rules | 42.52.807 |
| Remedies and enforcement | No NIL remedy. Under the agent act, a school or athlete harmed by an agent may sue for actual damages, costs and attorney fees, and the agent forfeits pay and refunds consideration; a violation is an unfair or deceptive act under the Consumer Protection Act; a prohibited act is a class C felony with a civil penalty up to $10,000 | 19.225.110; 19.225.120 |
| Employee status | Not addressed | None |
What Washington has enacted, and what it has not
Washington's Legislature has passed one NIL statute and no general NIL law.
- Enacted: SB 5913 (2024) added RCW 42.52.807 to the state ethics law. It passed the Senate 47-1 on 2024-01-31 and the House 92-2 on 2024-02-27, was signed on 2024-03-13 and took effect 2024-06-06. RCW 42.52.160 bars a state employee from using people, money or property under the employee's control for the private benefit or gain of another; the new section says the ethics chapter "does not prohibit" NIL advising, facilitation, acknowledgment or education by state university staff.
- SB 5870 (2022): the Uniform College Athlete Name, Image, or Likeness Act, a model act drafted by the Uniform Law Commission in 2021 (per the ESSB 5942 Senate bill report). Referred to Law & Justice on 2022-01-14; no further action.
- ESSB 5942 (2022): the same uniform act. It passed the Senate 44-5 on 2022-02-10. The Senate bill report says it would have barred schools, conferences and associations from preventing NIL pay or representation, protected scholarships, required disclosure of NIL agreements and exempted those disclosures from the Public Records Act, and created a right of action and civil penalties. A House committee recommended it on 2022-02-23, but it was returned to the Senate Rules Committee on 2022-03-10 and did not become law.
- HB 2352 (2024): the "college athlete protection act", which would have set "fair market value compensation" for athletes at public four-year schools from half of each team's revenue. It had a public hearing on 2024-02-21 and no further action.
- SB 6235 (2026): would bar certain private equity and sovereign wealth fund agreements in intercollegiate athletics. It had a hearing on 2026-01-26; no executive action was taken.
No NIL executive order and no Attorney General opinion on NIL were found for Washington.
Agents in Washington
Chapter 19.225 RCW is the Uniform Athlete Agents Act, amended in 2016 and 2020. Unlike Oregon, Washington keeps no registry of athlete agents. The protection is a disclosure form: on the day of first contact, the agent gives the athlete a signed form, under penalty of perjury, listing the agent's business, training, clients from the last five years, partners and owners of 5% or more, civil proceedings from the last 15 years, bankruptcies, criminal charges and any other state's registration (RCW 19.225.040). An agent who started acting before handing it over, after the athlete reached out first, has seven days (RCW 19.225.030(2)). The athlete and the agent also give the athletic director notice 72 hours before and 72 hours after signing (RCW 19.225.070), and since 2020 an agent may give the athlete something that could affect eligibility only with notice to the athletic director and the athlete's written acknowledgment (RCW 19.225.100(2)).
How it changed
| Act | What it did | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| SB 6457 (2002), Laws of 2002, chapter 131 | adopted the Uniform Athlete Agents Act, chapter 19.225 RCW | 2002-06-13 |
| SSB 6281 (2016), Laws of 2016, 1st special session, chapter 13 | amended the agent act (definitions, the athlete agent disclosure form, contract form, notice to the athletic director, remedies); became law over the governor's veto, overridden on 2016-03-28 and 2016-03-29 | 2016-06-28 |
| SB 6286 (2020), Laws of 2020, chapter 157 | let an athlete agent give a student athlete something of value that may affect eligibility if the agent notifies the athletic director within 72 hours and the athlete acknowledges the risk in a record (RCW 19.225.100(2)) | 2020-06-11 |
| SB 5913 (2024), Laws of 2024, chapter 33 | added RCW 42.52.807 to the state ethics law: state university employees may use public resources to advise, facilitate, acknowledge or educate athletes on NIL, following the rules of the national college sports organization | 2024-06-06 |
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; it is not law. Washington has no state law that governs NCAA, conference or school NIL rules, so § 121(a)(2) has little to reach; RCW 42.52.807 directs state university staff to follow the national organization's rules rather than overriding them. § 121(b)(1)(A) keeps "Uniform Athlete Agent Acts", which describes chapter 19.225 RCW (its short title is the uniform athlete agents act, RCW 19.225.900), except where it conflicts with § 121(a). In a state with no NIL statute, the bill would add the main rules: Division I athletes would report deals over $600 to the school and to the association or its designated entity within 5 days of signing (§ 101(b)(1), (5)); schools, conferences and collectives could pay athletes (§ 101(c)), subject to the revenue share cap (§ 114); and agents representing an athlete in an endorsement contract would register "with a State", capped at a 5% fee (§ 102, new SPARTA §§ 3(a)(5) and 9). Washington has no agent registry, so § 9(b)(2)'s route ("registered and certified under the All State Uniform Agent Acts in the State in which the agent operates") has no Washington registration to point to; § 9(b)(1) also counts registration with a professional sports league or players association, and the text does not say how § 9(b)(2) applies here.
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. Washington's athlete-agent rules are on the state-by-state registration table.
- High school. High school NIL in Washington 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 Washington
Does Washington have an NIL law in 2026?
Not a general one. The only NIL statute is RCW 42.52.807, added by SB 5913 (in force 2024-06-06), which lets state university employees use public resources to help athletes with NIL under the national organization's rules. NIL agents fall under the Uniform Athlete Agents Act, chapter 19.225 RCW. Bills for a full NIL law, SB 5870 and ESSB 5942 in 2022, did not pass.
Can Washington colleges pay athletes directly?
No Washington statute addresses it either way. HB 2352 (2024), the proposed "college athlete protection act", would have required revenue-based payments at public four-year schools but had only a hearing on 2024-02-21. What a school may pay is set by NCAA and conference rules and the House settlement, not by Washington law.
Do I have to tell my school about an NIL deal in Washington?
No Washington statute requires it. School policy can, and Division I athletes report deals of $600 or more through NIL Go within five business days under NCAA Bylaw 22.2.2. If an agent is involved, RCW 19.225.070(3) says the athlete tells the athletic director at least 72 hours before signing an agency contract and again within 72 hours after.
Does Washington require an NIL agent to be licensed?
No license or registration. Instead RCW 19.225.030 says an individual may not act as an athlete agent in Washington unless, on the day of first contact, the agent hands the athlete a signed athlete agent disclosure form listing training, past clients, business partners, lawsuits, criminal history and other registrations (RCW 19.225.040). An agency contract made without it is void, and the athlete may cancel any agency contract within 14 days (RCW 19.225.080).
Are NIL contracts public records in Washington?
The Public Records Act, chapter 42.56 RCW, has no exemption that names NIL contracts (checked 2026-10-21), and Washington has no NIL statute that adds one. ESSB 5942 (2022) would have exempted NIL disclosures but did not pass. Whether a particular record at a state university is exempt under another provision was not determined here.
Can a university employee help a Washington athlete with an NIL deal?
Yes, under RCW 42.52.807. The ethics law does not prohibit a state university employee from using public resources, including staff time, money and property, to advise, facilitate, acknowledge or educate athletes on NIL, as long as the resources are under that employee's control and the use follows the national college sports organization's rules.
Be your own agent. Leave.
