Illinois Adds ‘Bad Actor’ Clause to Sports Betting Legislation

A new amendment has been recently added to the state of Illinois’ legislation and, if it gets approved, it would prevent so-called “bad actors” from participating in the gambling market of this state.

So, some sportsbooks in the state might just have to take a step back. Because of that, some of the largest names in the business like DraftKings and FanDuel might also have to face a potential ban.

What Does That Mean?

It seems like state Representative, Bob Rita, added this amendment to the bill named, House Bill 3308. By doing so, it ed four other amendments that have also been added to the actual legislation…

…and it says that the state won’t be issuing licenses to the companies that have been d with the ones who have previously accepted bets in contravention with any law in the US.

It means that vendor or sportsbook operator licenses won’t be granted to any entity that was doing that or that is currently (or previously) d with a company or entity that was doing so.

Who Will Face the Ban?

So, it seems like some of the biggest names in the industry, like DraftKings and FanDuel, automatically won’t be allowed to even ask for a license in the Prairie State.

Why? Because both companies were caught up in offering gambling on daily fantasy sports in Illinois way back in 2015, which was against the law in this state at the time.

And, allegedly, they also continued to provide their services to residents of the state and ignored the ruling by state Attorney General, Lisa Madigan.

Not All Lawmakers Approve this Amendment

But, it seems like not all lawmakers from Illinois this amendment. Some have said that if such two big names like Fanduel and DraftKings don’t participate…

…then the sports betting will be a complete failure and the state won’t make revenue from the tax as was previously anticipated.

Also, the state issued a rule that each licensee would have to pay $10 million for obtaining the Illinois license, and every 10 years would have to renew the license by paying an additional $50,000.

Since the casino operators don’t have that much money to cover the initial fee, while DraftKings and Fanduel do, casinos are ing the new amendment because they are hoping that the fees would be reduced if the two giants don’t enter the Illinois market.

A license for the vendors would come to $100,000 and there would also be a renewal option every 10 years that would actually cost $50,000.

So, it seems like banning such big names like FanDuel and DraftKings would be really wrong and counter-intuitive…

…since they both would help drive the attention to sports betting and a healthy competition that would eventually bring money to the state.

Source:

“Illinois adds ‘bad actor’ clause to sports gambling legislation”, Erik Gibbs, April 2, 2019.