(KRON) -- A pair of California state senators wrote a letter on Wednesday urging schools in the Golden State to change how collegiate athletes are paid. In California, SB 206 allows colleges and universities to enter directly into name, image and likeness (NIL) deals with their college athletes, Sen. Nancy Skinner and Sen. Steven Bradford said. Skinner and Bradford are authors of SB 206. "We, the undersigned, urge all California colleges and universities to make full use of the state’sname, image, and likeness (NIL) law, SB 206, the Fair Pay to Play Act, which allows collegesand universities to enter into NIL deals directly with their college athletes," the letter reads. For years, student-athletes competed for their universities without compensation. That changed in 2021 when a rule was passed allowing athletes to profit off their name, image and likeness (NIL). This means players can be paid by a third party, such as a company or collective, if not by the school directly. Since NIL has gone into effect, athletes have signed deals with big brands -- such as USC women's basketball star Juju Watkins signing a deal with Nike. However, SB 206 would allow the schools to pay athletes directly. Cal WBB player makes a splash with sneaker design Although the bill went into effect in 2021, there are no known examples of schools paying athletes directly. Georgia, Illinois and Virginia enacted similar laws this year. "We are also writing this letter because California colleges and universities do not appear to bemaximizing this aspect of SB 206," the senators said. Allowing schools to pay their athletes directly could clean up some of the chaos permeating collegiate sports since NIL went into effect. Two weeks ago, UNLV's starting quarterback Matthew Sluka opted to leave the team and transfer from the school mid-season over NIL promises not being met. According to language in SB 206, one of the purposes of the bill is to prevent situations like that from happening. "It is the intent of the Legislature to continue to develop policies to ensure appropriate protections are in place to avoid exploitation of student athletes, colleges, and universities," Section 1B of the bill said. The letter clarified that the bill only allows schools to pay enrolled students, not recruits who have yet to take a class at the university. It also prevents entities like the NCAA from punishing schools or athletes who enter such a deal. The timing of the letter is because, on Nov. 13, prospective athletes for sports other than football can officially letters of intent with colleges, Skinner and Bradford said. A more streamlined payment system could be attractive to recruits still deciding where they want to go to school. KRON4 reached out to the NCAA for comment regarding the letter and we are awaiting a response.