Georgia became the latest state Monday to approve a type of Name, Image and Likeness compensation for high school athletes.

The Georgia High School Athletic Association passed a bylaw by a 66-9 vote to allow NIL deals for high school athletes, becoming at least the 30th state to approve such a ruling.

There are strong indications Florida could be the next state to join. Florida High School Athletic Association public relations specialist Ryan Harrison told the USA Today Florida Network this week that the FHSAA is in the process of drafting a proposal that will be given to the board of directors at an upcoming meeting.

Alabama High School Athletic Association executive director Alvin Briggs told AL.com on Tuesday morning that the AHSAA continues to look at all facets of its amateur rule. Alabama’s amateur rule prohibits pay-for-play and has been in place since 1929.

“Remember, to be an amateur, you can’t take any kind of funds that has anything to do with you playing in a contest,” Briggs said during the AHSAA’s media day event this summer. “Even at the next level, they’re not supposed to make any money for playing.”

NIL has become a major buzzword in athletic circles since the NCAA authorized players to enter business partnerships based on their celebrity status without losing eligibility.

The new Georgia bylaw states that a student-athlete may benefit from the use of their name, image and likeness with a couple of conditions:

1. The compensation is not contingent on specific athletic performance.

2. The compensation is not provided as an incentive to enroll or remain at a specific school.

3. The compensation is not provided by the school or any person acting as an agent for the school.

Former AHSAA executive director Steve Savarese said Georgia’s ruling is “significant.”

“It will completely do away with the amateur rule,” he said. “There is no way to govern or regulate it. We study history to predict what will happen in the future. What’s happened with NIL in college? It’s out of control. When high school athletes start making more than the principal and the superintendent, you’ve got a real problem.”

Alabama’s amateur rule currently states, in part: An amateur is one who does not use his/her knowledge of athletics or athletic skill for gain.

Alabama, Texas and Mississippi are among the states that still have not passed an NIL motion for high schools. Savarese hopes that doesn’t change anytime soon. He said the bylaw Georgia passed is a similar template to the one passed by many other states at this point.

“The sad part of what happened is you have athletes in Alabama who are considering going to Georgia, Louisiana, will (consider going to) Florida so they can maximize their potential as an NIL athlete,” Savarese said on Fox Sports The Game in Opelika on Tuesday. “Well, they can’t wear their uniform. They can’t act in accordance with the school. So, who will pay these people?

“If Nike wants to take a basketball player that’s in the 10th grade and wants to say, ‘No, we are not paying you because you are in uniform or because of your performance, but we want to pay you a million dollars in the 10th grade.’ That child would be able to receive money based on this. NIL in high school will completely change the dynamics of everything.”

Savarese said he believes NIL at the high school level could lead to creating schools of all-stars where “students are now participating, not to play for the schools, but to play for themselves.”

“I don’t think we are doing something for the best of our students,” he added. “It probably one day will happen in Alabama and Texas, but I hope they hold off as long as they can.”