Two bills are advancing in Minnesota that would prohibit sweepstakes casinos and prediction markets on a wide range of events, including sports.
The state’s Senate has already approved bill SF4511, which would severely restrict prediction markets in Minnesota. On Monday, the legislation was received by the House and assigned to the Commerce, Finance, and Policy committee.
The Senate also passed SF4474 last week, a bill that proposes banning sweepstakes casinos. It has been assigned to the Public Safety Finance and Policy committee. House representatives have until May 18 to pass the bills on to Governor Tim Walz.
Prediction Market Prohibition
The prediction market legislation would ban companies from offering markets related to the following:
- Any athletic events, including horse racing
- Wars, natural disasters, mass shootings, and other events related to tragedies and violence
- The outcome of legal cases
- Elections
- Entertainment markets, such as awards shows and release dates
- Mention markets
- Short-term weather events
The Senate passed the legislation in a 56-10 vote last week. One of the bill’s sponsors, Sen. John Marty, said the approval signaled lawmakers’ belief that prediction markets have gotten out of control.
“It shows that people of both parties, people who are pro-gambling and anti-gambling together, can recognize that the prediction markets are ripe for conflict of interest, things like insider trading for politicians, for others. It’s a huge thing ripe for scandal. And it’s gone out of control,” said Marty.
The debate on whether prediction markets are legal trading or illegal gambling continues to draw attention across the US.
Minnesota is one of the few states that prohibit both retail and online sports betting, and Sen. Marty emphasized that the bill aims to clarify that prediction markets constitute illegal gambling.
“We’re saying no, these are bets, sports bets, bets on politics, things that are currently illegal,” he said at a hearing last month.
Minnesota Senator Wagering on Himself Sparks Ban
The US Senate unanimously banned all Senators from participating in prediction markets last week. This followed Minnesota Sen. Matt Klein wagering on himself to win his primary at Kalshi.
Klein settled with Kalshi, agreeing to pay a $539.85 fine and a five-year ban from the platform. He supported the ban on Senators using prediction markets, commenting that his experience, “like many other Minnesotans, points to the need for clearer rules and regulations for these types of markets.”
Kalshi also sanctioned a California gubernatorial candidate for placing a wager on himself at the platform.
“As a candidate in a race, you can (and probably should) follow and use Kalshi’s market forecast, but you should not trade on it,” said the company when announcing it had fined Kyle Langford over $2,000 and banned him from using the platform for five years.
Sweepstakes Ban Also Progressing
With strict anti-gambling laws in place, Minnesota is also moving to close another legal loophole that is allowing residents to gamble online. Like the prediction market ban, lawmakers approved a prohibition on sweepstakes casinos last week.
The legislation defines an online sweepstakes casino as “a game, contest, or promotion that:
- (1) is available on the Internet or accessible on a mobile device, computer terminal, or similar access device;
- (2) utilizes a dual-currency system of payment allowing the player to exchange the currency for a prize, award, cash, cash equivalent, or chance to win a prize, award, cash, or cash equivalent; and
- (3) simulates casino-style or another form of gambling“
Only a handful of platforms currently restrict access to their sites in Minnesota. If approved, the bill would empower the state’s Attorney General to take action against operators and promoters.
Indiana and Maine have already passed bills prohibiting sweepstakes casinos this year, joining a raft of states that banned the platforms last year. Lawmakers in Tennessee, however, failed to approve legislation explicitly criminalizing operators. The state has already taken enforcement action against many companies, although some remain operational.
The two bills in Minnesota are gaining traction in a state that has taken a strong anti-gambling stance. There appears to be little appetite to open the state’s gambling industry, with a proposal to legalize sports betting failing to advance earlier this year.
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Two bills are advancing in Minnesota that would prohibit sweepstakes casinos and prediction markets on a wide range of events, including sports. The state’s Senate has already approved bill SF4511, which would severely restrict prediction markets in Minnesota. On Monday, the legislation was received by the House and assigned to the Commerce, Finance, and Policy
The post Minnesota Moves Closer to Banning Prediction Markets & Sweepstakes Casinos appeared first on CasinoBeats.