The Latest Updates On Gambling Regulations In The Us and Worldwide June 2019

Though the holiday season has already begun, the busy gambling industry seems to be far away from taking a rest. The increased number of states in the US is moving closer and closer to accepting various forms of gambling as legal activities. Moreover…

… Apple brought some important updates. Globally looking, important changes occurred, with Spain combating gambling adverts and Switzerland approving licenses.

You already witnessed numerous updates which took place in May, here are the June highlights:

Illinois Waits for Governor’s signature

The Illinois House and Senate voted through a gambling expansion bill (SB690) that included measures to approve sports betting in the state. The proposal would regulate sports wagering in casinos, racetracks, and sports venues as well as online and proposed a 15% tax rate on the gross win. The Senate ed the bill 87-27 with the House’s approval of 46-10. It will now go to Governor JB Pritzker for signature later in the month.

Hearing in Massachusetts

The Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Committee held a hearing on the legalization and regulation of land-based and mobile sports wagering. Notably, representatives from the state’s land-based casinos including MGM Resorts and Wynn Resorts gave testimony in favor of legislation indicating a reversal of their previous opposition to mobile wagering.

Fantasy Sports Amendments in Louisiana Rejected

Louisiana Senate ed SB 153 and sent it to the State House for further examination. The tax rate wasn’t finalized within SB153. Louisiana’s House Appropriations Committee voted 14-6 to reject Senator Martiny’s proposal to allow sports wagering in the state. Martiny told media outlets…

… the bill was loaded with objectionable amendments and wouldn’t have won enough legislative to , even if it made it out of the committee. The Louisiana Senate ed the regulation of sports wagering but this was rejected by the House and its budget committee. Moreover…

…amendments to a fantasy sports bill that would have given citizens a vote on approving wagering were also rejected unanimously by the House of Representatives. House Bill 459 focused on legalizing daily fantasy sports but was amended to also include sports betting.

Governor’s Disagreement in New York

Legislators made several amendments to existing sports wagering bills live in the 2019 legislative session. A06113 and SB17 were amended to clarify that tribes would be allowed to offer sports wagering as well as to include a 12% gross win tax on mobile sports betting activity and a $12m initial licensing fee.

The NY Senate Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee voted to advance a bill that would approve in-person and mobile sports wagering in the state. SB17 was introduced in January by Senator, Joseph Addabbo, and ed the Committee by a vote of 6-0 and will now progress forward to the Senate Finance Committee for further debate.

If it came into law, the bill would have two different tax rates: 8.5% on gross revenue for in-person bets placed on casino premises and 12% for wagers placed on mobile. However, continued opposition to the bill from Governor, Andrew Cuomo, remained a major obstacle to its further progress. The Commission approved regulations governing sports betting in the state…

…and cleared the way for the licensing process for the New York’s four upstate casinos to begin. If licensed they would be allowed to operate sports wagering on casino premises only. Furthermore, The Senate ed Senator’s bill to legalize mobile wagering in New York and must now be approved by the state Assembly before the end of the state’s legislative session.

Turbulences with DoJ and Wire Act

A District Court Judge ruled in favor of New Hampshire in its legal challenge against the US Department of Justice’s revised Wire Act opinion. The judge said the 1961 act only applied to sports betting and rejected the DoJ Office of Legal Counsel’s 2018 opinion that the Act covered all forms of gambling. The court added that DoJ’s revised opinion was:

“no hypothetical case: the plaintiffs have demonstrated with specific record evidence that they had standing when they filed suit because a sufficiently imminent threat of enforcement loomed. Before the 2018 Opinion, federal law enforcement could not invoke the Wire Act to disconnect the Lottery Commission from the internet. Now it can.”

The DoJ had extended the non-enforcement period of its revised Wire Act interpretation to 31 December 2019 following the ruling handed down by the District Court earlier in the month which rejected the opinion. Congress filed a bill proposing that no funds be made available to the DoJ should it seek to enforce legal action with regard to its interpretation of the scope of the Wire Act over gambling products in the US. The text of the bill read:

“None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to enforce the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel memorandum entitled ‘Reconsidering Whether the Wire Act Applies to Non-Sports Gambling’ (issued on November 2, 2018).”

Apple Makes Significant Updates

Apple updated Section 4.2, the ‘Minimum Functionality’ clause, of its App Store guidelines. It requires that publishers “include features, content and interface that elevate it beyond a repackaged website.” This means operators must produce an app that is distinct and does not look like a mobile web or app-lite version of their websites. Apple gave operators until the start of September to comply.

Brazil Waits for the New Auction for LOTEX

Brazil moved a step closer towards legislation in April, as Bill MP 846 successfully ed a voting session. The public hearing on online gambling proposed by Congressman, Evandro Roman, took place on 22 May 2019…

…with a number of industry experts having been invited to address the event. The gambling regulator confirmed there would be no cap on the number of betting licenses that can be issued to operators when the activity is regulated in the country. Brazil ed a law to legalize sports betting in December last year…

…with regulators given two years to draft regulations. However, since no offers for the planned privatization of LOTEX, Brazil’s instant lottery scratchcard business were put forward during the latest auction for LOTEX held at the end of May the process will likely be delayed. A new auction is due to be held in the next three months, the focus would then switch to regulating sports betting in South America’s largest economy.

Urging a Complete Ad Ban in Spain

Citizens’ rights ombudsman, Francisco Fernández Marugán, urged the Spanish government to look at completely banning advertising related to gambling and betting in the media, radio, television, and internet. He added that there should be an overhaul of regulations…

…and a review of licenses and sanctions related to the industry. Adding more value to protection, gambling regulator Dirección General de Ordenación del Juego (DGOJ) published its new three-year the strategy sets out plans to ensure operators worked in a socially responsible manner while allowing licensees and cooperating with them to develop innovative new products and services. The new Charter of Services came into effect this year until 2022, with four priority areas:

• ensuring a safe and secure gaming environment for players
• encouraging licensees to innovate across all channels
• improve responsible gambling controls
• a positive impact on Spanish society.

Switzerland Approves Licenses

The Swiss National Council (Bundesrat) approved the iGaming license applications from those four land-based casinos. The Swiss gambling regulator Eidgenössische Spielbankenkommission (ESBK) approved each venue’s application but had to secure the Swiss National Council’s permission before it could formally award the licenses. ESBK will aim to distribute all permits before the end of June.

Source:

“H2GC”, May/June 2019