When it comes to who is considered an athlete agent, most of the state laws agree that an agent is someone who, for compensation, recruits or solicits an athlete to enter into an agent contract, professional sports services contract or financial services contract or for a fee offers, promises or attempts to obtain employment for an athlete with a professional sports team.

Many of the states exclude members of their state's bar, essentially exempting practicing attorneys in the state from registration requirements.

Registration requirements

Requirements vary widely for those individuals who are required to register.

States with agent laws but no registration requirements are California, Colorado, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

It took the NCAA Washington, D.C., office (with the help of several interns) nearly a year to collect and analyze each of the 27 state athlete agent bills.

"In some states, our efforts to identify a state contact person to answer questions about an existing athlete agent law were slowed because we could not locate anyone who was familiar with the law," said Daniel Nestel, NCAA federal relations assistant. "With so many different state laws and varying requirements, it is hard to imagine that there are many athlete agents who are in full compliance with each state's athlete-agent regulations."

Because such variation in laws from state to state make it difficult for an agent to meet requirements in every state where he or she conducts business or makes contacts, efforts have been made to create federal legislation and to construct legislation that could be adopted in every state through the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws.

The NCAA supports the development of a uniform state agent law rather than federal legislation.

The uniform state law conference -- a 105-year-old organization with representatives from every state -- has named a drafting committee that met in May to begin forming a uniform agent law. The committee will meet again in November to begin serious editing and drafting of the uniform law.

Committed to project

Richard C. Perko, an NCAA legislative assistant assigned as an observer to the drafting committee, said the tentative timetable anticipates a finished product in 2000 for states to take to their legislatures. A draft will be presented to the membership of the uniform law conference next summer and a final draft will be presented at the conference's annual convention in summer 1999.

"We remain committed to this project," Perko said. "We are going to see it through, while keeping track of the various state laws and any federal legislation."

At its first meeting, the conference discussed a model law drafted by the Sports Lawyers Association but chose to create its own legislation.

While the process to develop a uniform state law is lengthy, the Association prefers that approach over federal legislation. However, activity continues in Congress.

In July, Rep. John Duncan (R-Tennessee) introduced H.R. 2171 aimed at regulating athlete-agent conduct. The bill would prohibit athlete agents from making any offer providing an inducement for or establishing an agreement with a student-athlete for the purpose of entering or soliciting entry into an agent contract before the end of the student's eligibility. The bill also sets specific requirements for athlete-agent contracts.

Duncan drafted similar legislation last year but did not introduce the bill. The House Education and Workforce Committee is not expected to take action on H.R. 2171.

Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tennessee), who introduced federal athlete-agent legislation last year, is considering introducing a new athlete-agent bill.

Number of registrants varies greatly

With regard to the state laws, the absence of consistency is shown in a number of ways, including the number of registered agents in each of the states with registration laws. The NCAA study determined that the number of agents registered in July 1997 varied from 120 in Alabama to zero in 15 states.

If an agent enters into a contract with a student-athlete, most of the agent laws require the agent to warn the student about the loss of eligibility as a result of entering into such an agreement. Some of the laws require a period of rescission in which the student has an opportunity to rescind the contract.

Most of the laws also require the agent to notify the athletics department at the student's university or college -- and sometimes the university as well.

The penalties imposed on agents who violate a state's law also are all over the spectrum. In some states, violation of the agent law is a felony carrying a penalty of several thousand dollars in fines and/or imprisonment and possible damage liability from universities.

Other states penalize an agent for violating their laws by revoking a license or imposing a fine but consider the violation a misdemeanor.

South Carolina, Tennessee and Missouri hold the student-athlete responsible as well as the agent. In those states, the universities are permitted to seek civil damages against the student-athlete for damages that result from the student-athlete's subsequent ineligibility.

Laws in the three states allow for additional damages to be assessed in an amount equal to three times the value of the athletics scholarship furnished by the institution during the student-athlete's eligibility.

In cases where the university seeks civil damages, Tennessee, for example, determines that an institution is damaged when the institution or student is penalized or disqualified or suspended from participation in intercollegiate athletics by a national association or conference. Because of the penalty, the institution loses revenue from media coverage and tickets sales, loses the right to recruit an athlete, loses proceeds from postseason competition or forfeits an athletics contest.

Enforcement of the agent laws has not been a high priority in many states, although Florida and Texas have successfully prosecuted individuals under their agent laws.

One problem states have is the authority to subpoena witnesses or records. Kansas and Texas are the only states to give the secretary of state subpoena power to assist in getting testimony, records and other material the secretary considers relevant to investigation of agent activity.

STATE -- # OF AGENTS REGISTERED -- REGISTRATION COST -- PENALTIES

Alabama -- 120 -- $50,000 bond -- Class C felony; fine up to $5,000, up to 10 years in prison.

Arkansas -- 3 -- Unspecified fee -- Forfeiture of right to repayment from athlete of anything of value received as inducement.

California -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Fine of up to $50,000 and/or imprisonment up to one year in county jail.

Colorado -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Fine up to $10,000.

Connecticut -- 0 -- $100,000 bond and -- Civil penalty of up to $1,000 and profits derived from action or restitution unspecified registration fee.

Florida -- 0 -- $15,000 bond -- Third-degree felony; university may sue for damages.

Georgia -- 41 -- Unspecified fee -- Felony; fine up to $100,000 and/or imprisonment up to five years.

Indiana -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Class D felony.

Iowa -- 1 -- Unspecified fee -- Civil penalty up to $10,000, misdemeanor.

Kansas -- 2 -- $1,000 annual fee and $100,000 bond -- Class A misdemeanor; fine up to $25,000.

Kentucky -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Class D felony.

Louisiana -- 30 -- Unspecified fee -- Misdemeanor; fine up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment up to one year.

Maryland -- 3 -- Unspecified fee -- Misdemeanor; fine up to $10,000 or imprisonment up to one year.

Michigan -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Misdemeanor; fine up to $50,000 or an amount equal to three times the amount given, -- -- -- -- -- -- offered or promised as inducement and/or imprisonment up to one year.

Minnesota -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Fine up to $100,000 or an amount equal to three times the amount given, offered or promised as inducement and/or imprisonment up to one year.

Mississippi -- 6 -- Unspecified annual fee, $100,000 bond -- Fine up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment up to two years.

Missouri -- 0 -- $500 biennial fee -- Class B misdemeanor; liable for damages to institution for a student-athlete's ineligibility.

Nevada -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Misdemeanor, liable to institution for damages from loss of TV revenue, ticket sales, etc.

North Carolina -- 0 -- $200 annual fee, $100,000 bond -- Class I felony; fine up to $25,000 for multiple violations.

North Dakota -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Class A misdemeanor; liable for damages.

Ohio -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Misdemeanor; penalty up to $10,000.

Oklahoma -- 0 -- $1,000 annual fee; $100,000 bond -- Misdemeanor; fine up to $500,000 and/or imprisonment of one year.

Pennsylvania -- 0 -- No registration clause -- Misdemeanor; fine up to $10,000 or three times the amount given or promised as inducement and/or imprisonment up to one year.

South Carolina -- 20 -- $300 biennial fee -- Felony; fine up to $5,000 and/or imprisonment up to five years.

Tennessee -- 50 -- $250 one-time fee, $15,000 bond -- Violation is felony; failure to register is misdemeanor.

Texas -- 51 -- Unspecified annual fee -- Class A misdemeanor; fine up to $25,000.

Washington -- 2 -- Unspecified annual fee -- Class C felony.