By Johnny Clements 

The Poke Press 

A new bill that would conceal how student-athletes are paid by universities is causing controversy and legal action as it gets closer to being written into law.  

Louisiana House Bill 608 was passed 91-4 on April 22 by the Louisiana House of Representatives and is now headed for the state senate. The bill seeks to create new public records exemptions that conceal how much money state universities pay directly to student-athletes.  

The bill would also conceal how the revenue is divided among various athletic programs. If the bill is passed, the only figure that would be accessible via public record would be the overall revenue but not how much of that revenue was allocated for each program or individual athlete. 

Proponents of the bill argue for the importance of individual student-athletes’ privacy and claim public knowledge of the amount of compensation they receive could draw unwanted attention. They also claim the bill would put Louisiana on equal ground with other states that conceal revenue-sharing records. 

Keifer Ackley, assistant athletic director for NIL and student-athlete development at McNeese State University, said the confidentiality protects student-athletes. 

“Many states are recognizing that while overall transparency remains important, individual contract details involving student-athletes should remain confidential,” Ackley said. “Protecting student-athletes from unnecessary exposure, pressure, and risk is an important part of navigating this new era of collegiate athletics responsibly.” 

McNeese State University Athletic Director Bridget Martin believes the bill falls in line with the current status quo for revenue-sharing policies.  

“Currently, we don’t supply information on scholarship dollars allocated to our student-athletes,” Martin said. “I think the gray area that the NIL space is in falls more so under the scholarship protections versus employment [compensation].”   

Those opposed to the passage of the bill argue that all money spent by a public university is public money. Therefore, the public has a right to know how universities’ money is allocated. They also point out the bill would hide how university revenue is dispersed among various programs. A frequently used example in the hearings for the bill was that the public would not know how much revenue the universities share with the football team as opposed to the women’s basketball team or gymnastics team. 

 Rep. Wilford Carter, D-Lake Charles, was outspoken in his opposition to HB 608. 

“I can understand the well intentions of this legislation to try and protect the student-athletes; everybody wants to do that,” Charles said. “I personally think if a student-athlete is making a million dollars, the public’s got a right to know that. What we’re seeking to do here, as well-intentioned as it is, is denying the public information about public money.” 

Several members of the Louisiana media have recently sought legal action against Louisiana State University for denying their public records requests regarding revenue sharing.  

Scott Sternberg, an attorney representing members of the media in their current lawsuit and an expert on First Amendment and media law issues, spoke out at a hearing about the bill. He warned about the potential long-term consequences if HB 608 were to be put into law. 

“It is a very slippery slope on which you are climbing,” Sternberg said. 

According to Sternberg, regardless of anyone’s opinion on the bill, seeing as it has not yet been ratified, the university had no grounds on which to deny media members access to the information. 

McNeese State University Interim President Kedrick Nicholas remains neutral on HB 608, saying that he can see the pros and cons of the bill. 

“The passage of the bill will not have any effect on how McNeese conducts business in terms of player compensation,” Nicholas said. “Most of our student-athletes receive their NIL payments from a third party. The small number who receive payments through revenue share are simple to manage.”