Georgia
Georgia Allows Schools to Directly Pay Athletes for NIL
Whether or not the House settlement is fully approved, Georgia’s colleges and universities can begin paying their athletes for their name, image and likeness immediately.
On Tuesday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed an executive order that prohibits the NCAA or any athletic conference from punishing schools that directly compensate student-athletes for their NIL.
Currently, the NCAA does not allow schools to directly pay their athletes for the rights to their NIL use. However, the organization has agreed to remove the edict as part of a pending settlement that is still working its way toward court approval.
In a joint statement emailed to Sportico, Josh Brooks and J Batt, the respective athletic directors for Georgia and Georgia Tech, expressed their thanks to the governor for signing the order. “In the absence of nationwide name, image and likeness regulation, this executive order helps our institutions with the necessary tools to fully support our student-athletes in their pursuit of NIL opportunities, remain competitive with our peers and secure the long-term success of our athletics programs,” they said in the statement.
Georgia has joined Virginia in explicitly allowing colleges to compensate athletes for their NIL—a concept that is contemplated in the proposed but not-yet-approved settlement between the NCAA and attorneys for athletes to resolve the House, Carter and Hubbard antitrust litigations.
The Georgia law is less transformative than it might have been before the proposed settlement and before the NCAA announced it would no longer enforce amateurism restrictions in the context of NIL. The NCAA took that step during the spring after U.S. District Judge Clifton Corker, in Tennessee and Virginia v. NCAA, issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the NCAA from enforcing rules that preclude college athletes and recruits from negotiating compensation for NIL with collectives and boosters.
As the NCAA moves toward a model where colleges in power conferences can directly pay college athletes for media rights, ticket sales sponsorships and NIL, the Georgia law seems to codify a concept that will soon be in play.
The Georgia law is also consistent with U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken’s concerns about restricting NIL opportunities for college athletes. She stressed in a recent hearing that she would not approve a settlement that takes away NIL opportunities for college athletes. The settlement currently contemplates a distinction between NIL deals that draw from use of athletes’ right of publicity versus those deals that are connected to collectives and boosters and appear to be more in line with pay-for-play. One proposed mechanism to enforce that distinction is the use of fair market value analysis in review of NIL deals. Whether that distinction can be consistently and logically applied is a source of industry debate.
It’s possible Wilken could cite the Georgia law in further deliberations with the attorneys. The parties have until Sept. 26 to send her a revised settlement. Should the settlement collapse or be rejected, the cases would return to the docket.
Kemp’s order comes as the University of Tennessee, an SEC rival of the defending football champion Georgia Bulldogs, announced that it will tack on a “talent fee” onto football tickets next season to help fund its revenue-sharing pool for athletes.
Georgia
Georgia OC Mike Bobo gets giant pay raise, salary matches DC Glenn Schumann
Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann will be paid equally in 2026 after receiving raises, according to an Athens Banner-Herald report.
Coach Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs are coming off a second consecutive SEC championship season and College Football Playoff Sugar Bowl quarterfinal appearance.
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Georgia
Georgia Lt. Gov. announces bill inspired by Charlie Kirk to protect student speech
Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones on Monday unveiled legislation inspired by the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk that he says would expand students’ free speech rights in public schools, making Georgia the first state in the nation to pursue such a measure.
Jones announced the “True Patriotism and Universal Student Access Act,” known as the TPUSA Act, on Monday as a priority for the 2026 legislative session. The proposal, sponsored by State Sen. Ben Watson (R–Savannah), would strengthen First Amendment protections for public school students by safeguarding their right to speak, organize, and express political and religious views on campus.
The bill is explicitly shaped around the work and legacy of Charlie Kirk, the founder of the conservative advocacy group Turning Point USA and its political arm, Turning Point Action. Jones and others have framed the legislation as a way to honor Kirk’s efforts to mobilize young conservatives and defend free speech in schools and on college campuses.
“In the spirit and memory of Charlie’s work, the TPUSA Act in Georgia would ensure that students’ First Amendment rights to organize, gather and speak are protected, regardless of their religious, political, or social viewpoints,” Jones said in a press release. “Georgia is leading the way as the first state in the nation to do it.”
Jones, who is running for governor and is endorsed by both former President Donald Trump and Turning Point Action, also emphasized his broader commitment to free speech rights as part of his campaign rhetoric.
“Georgia is building on the work of Charlie Kirk to ensure students can speak, organize and express their beliefs freely,” Jones posted on social media.
The TPUSA Act would require public schools in Georgia to permit political expression before, during and after the school day to the same extent that non-political expression is allowed. It also would let students form political clubs and groups during non-instructional time, bar discrimination against groups based on viewpoint, and guarantee that students could wear politically themed clothing and accessories under the same standards that apply to other permitted attire.
Supporters say the legislation would ensure that school administrators cannot block students from engaging in peaceful political activities and that all viewpoints, partisan and nonpartisan, would have equal access to meeting spaces and facilities.
Sen. Watson said the move reflects the belief that schools should not restrict students’ free speech or prohibit them from organizing around their beliefs.
“School officials should not have the power to enforce their own ideologies on students,” he said.
Josh Thifault, senior director at Turning Point Action, praised Georgia’s effort, asserting that Kirk “lived and died for the First Amendment.” He added that the legislation will benefit students “for decades to come” by removing barriers to student expression.
Georgia
Georgia lawmakers stall car boot ban, leaving frustrated drivers with no relief from predatory parking enforcement
Daryl Terry II had exited a popular wing restaurant, only to discover a heavy metal boot clamped to his car’s wheel. “I think booting should be banned because it’s predatory. You’re preying on people who are just trying to visit business establishments,” Daryl said, shaking his head while holding a $100 boot removal receipt.
Daryl explained that the parking lot was confusing, with faded signs barely visible even in broad daylight. “At night, you can’t see the sign at all,” he said. “By the time I got to my car, there were already two boots on it. The guy told me I left the property and didn’t pay, so he was entitled to boot my car.”
He’s not alone. Maddie Yoder, who works at a nearby bakery, has experienced the same fate. “I’ve worked here for five years. One morning, I quickly grabbed a spot and came back to a boot. The attendant literally waits for people to make a mistake,” she said, pointing out the tricky signage that designates spots for specific businesses.
Both drivers are among many Georgians who hoped a recent State Senate bill would end what they call predatory booting. Democratic State Senator Josh McLaurin, the bill’s sponsor, says the practice is a form of extortion. “Georgia needs to ban the boot. You’re trapped when it happens.”
Despite gaining bipartisan support, the bill was abruptly killed in a procedural move. It was sent to a committee that, due to the chairman’s resignation, couldn’t hold hearings or move bills forward.
“That committee is essentially dead,” McLaurin explained. Efforts to get comment from the Lt. Governor’s office about the bill’s demise went unanswered.
McLaurin isn’t giving up. He plans to reintroduce the legislation later this session, hopeful that relief is still possible for Georgia drivers. He also points out an inconsistency: “Towing companies in Georgia are regulated and can’t just wait in a lot for you to mess up. Booting, on the other hand, is barely regulated at all.”
For now, drivers like Daryl and Maddie keep a closer eye on the signs—and their wallets—hoping that lawmakers will finally put the brakes on predatory booting.
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