Back in 2009, state leaders in Tennessee approved what was dubbed as the “jock tax.” It was a controversial piece of legislation that impacted a ton of NBA and NHL players.
All said, the professional privilege tax cost players between $2,500 and $7,500 per game. That’s no small amount for those playing at the league minimum in each sport (via The Commercial Appeal).
If taxed $2,500 per game, a player earning the mandatory minimum of $543,000 would see $205,000 taken out of his check in the NBA. Considering the $543,000 is before federal and state taxes, this had a major impact on the earning potential of those who aren’t household names.
Seven years after its passage, the city of Memphis is now prepared to pay back $2.38 million to more than 900 professional basketball players as part of a settlement the city came to with those representing said players.
Those involved in the settlement include individuals playing in semi-pro and other non-NBA leagues. All said, it averages out to just $26,000 per person. Though, those in the NBA will receive a larger piece of the pie.
This comes after the Tennessee General Assembly voted back in 2014 to repeal the tax, effective immediately for the NHL and on June 1st of this year for the NBA.
It also comes after the National Basketball Players Association sued the state over the taxes, citing the fact that some players paid more in taxes than they earned from actually playing basketball.
This is an absolutely absurd story that’s flown under the radar of the mainstream. Let’s just hope those impacted directly will see more of their hard-earned cash go back into their pocket.
Let’s also hope the state of Tennessee will find itself in a position to have to pony up some cash to these athletes.