Wisconsin NIL bill has sweeping public records exception beyond NIL

(The Center Square) – A Wisconsin name, image and likeness bill that would send $15 million annually for athletic facility debt to the University of Wisconsin system could soon reach the Senate floor after passing the Assembly.

But, the Wisconsin Newspaper Association is warning lawmakers and the public that a public records stipulation that could have a sweeping unintended impact that goes well beyond NIL records.

The bill would exempt records related to the “generation, deployment, or allocation of revenue generated by an intercollegiate athletic program.”

“As drafted, it looks to create a sweeping exemption for any financial record connected to a public university’s athletic program,” WNA Executive Director Beth Bennett wrote in testimony. “Public universities are taxpayer-supported institutions. Athletic departments generate and spend millions of dollars in public and quasi-public funds. Decisions about how revenue is raised, allocated, and spent directly affect students, ta...