.svg)
With the U.S. Capitol as their backdrop, two Democratic lawmakers were joined by public health advocates as they introduced legislation on Thursday (September 12) to create a federal oversight structure for state-authorized sports betting.
U.S. Representative Paul Tonko of New York and Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut officially introduced the Supporting Affordability and Fairness with Every (SAFE) Bet Act, a bill aiming to reduce gambling addiction and establish minimum federal standards for sports-betting advertising and the use of artificial intelligence (AI), among other topics.
The 50-page bill would require all states with legal sports betting to apply for approval from the U.S. Department of Justice for exemption from a general federal prohibition on sports wagering, with that approval contingent on state regulations aligning with new minimum standards established by the legislation.
“To be clear, we are in no way attempting to ban gambling on sports,” Tonko told reporters. “In fact, our goal is the opposite; the SAFE Bet Act will ensure that gambling on sports is made safe for the public.”
Tonko added that the bill was “an effort to prevent harm before it occurs”.
“Let’s be very clear right now, the gambling industry methodically and relentlessly targets losers because that is where the money is,” said Blumenthal, who earlier this year wrote to industry CEOs seeking information on how they use AI and other technologies to market their sportsbook platforms.
“State regulation is half-hearted, and half-baked,” Blumenthal said. “That’s why we need a national standard, not to ban gambling but simply take back control over an industry that is out of bounds.”
The legislation specifically requires that states meet minimum standards in three categories: advertising; affordability; and AI.
According to the bill, state regulations would have to ensure that all advertising for sports betting is prohibited between the hours of 8am and 10pm, as well as during live sporting events.
Tonko said the concept was simple, and that ads for a “known addictive product should be limited to times and spaces when children are not likely to be in the audience”.
Although language-restricting endorsements by celebrities or athletes are not actually in the legislation, Tonko also said that as celebrities are not seen in alcohol advertisements, they should not be able to discuss their favorite parlay wager in sports-betting advertising.
Under the SAFE Bet Act's affordability provisions, states would have to ensure that gamblers are unable to deposit more than five times during a 24-hour period, with operators such as FanDuel and DraftKings required to conduct affordability checks on customers before accepting wagers of more than $1,000 over a 24-hour period or $10,000 within a 30-day period.
The bill by Tonko and Blumenthal would also expressly prohibit the use of AI to track a player’s gambling habits, create customized promotions, or suggest specific wagers, including microbets on particular plays. Tonko did not call out DraftKings by name but specifically mentioned the company's recent acquisition of microbetting specialist Simplebet as an indicator of what he felt was a problem.
If approved, the bill also bans the use of credit cards to make deposits, prohibits in-play wagers and prop bets on college and amateur athletes, as well as establishes a national self-exclusion list.
Blumenthal stressed that an exclusion list was important.
“A lot of people know they have a problem but even after they realize it, the industry targets them when they are most vulnerable,” he claimed.
With just weeks remaining before Congress adjourns to campaign for the November 5 election, time is running out for the SAFE Bet Act to make progress this year.
However, a spokeswoman for Tonko told Vixio GamblingCompliance that the congressman plans to reintroduce the bill in January, while industry lobbyists are also understood to be preparing for a potential hearing in the coming weeks before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where Blumenthal chairs a subcommittee on digital safety and privacy.
“This relationship between the gambling industry and sports has reached intolerably dangerous levels and it is well past time for Congress to step up and make a difference,” Tonko said.
SAFE Bet Act Facing Opposition
It did not take long for supporters of the gaming industry to respond to the new federal legislation unveiled on Thursday.
U.S. Representative Dina Titus, a Democrat whose Nevada district includes the Las Vegas Strip, issued a statement saying the bill “reinforces the outdated and unwanted prejudice against gaming”.
“While the SAFE Bet Act is perhaps well-intentioned, preempting state gaming regulators by outlawing most forms of advertising and restricting the types and methods by which customers can place bets is a misguided approach,” Titus said.
“Offering customers a wide variety of choices, enhancing their gaming experience, and advertising legal operators are essential ways to compete with the illegal market which offers no consumer protection, state tax revenue, or responsible gaming resources.”
As Tonko and Blumenthal were introducing their bill, both the American Gaming Association (AGA) and iDevelopment & Economic Association (iDEA), an association that represents regulated U.S. online gaming and sports-betting companies, released statements in opposition to the SAFE Bet Act.
“Six years into legal sports betting, introducing heavy-handed federal prohibitions is a slap in the face to state legislatures and gaming regulators who have dedicated countless time and resources to developing thoughtful frameworks unique to their jurisdictions, and have continued to iterate as their marketplaces evolve,” said Chris Cylke, AGA’s senior vice president of government relations.
iDEA described the bill as an “unnecessary and harmful federal overreach into an area that has been successfully regulated at the state level” since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the federal sports-betting ban in 2018.
According to iDEA, the proposed prohibition on certain promotions and the use of AI technologies ignores the importance of innovation in creating a secure and safe environment for sports bettors.
“By restricting legitimate tools used by operators to ensure the safety of players and enhance the user experience, the federal government risks pushing more consumers toward unregulated, illegal markets where no safeguards exist,” iDEA said.
“Instead of imposing unnecessary restrictions on legal, state-licensed sport betting operators, Congress should use its power to collaborate with states to shut down illegal offshore sportsbooks that brazenly defy federal law.”
Additional reporting by James Kilsby.
