Connecticut General Assembly to Consider Three Gaming-Related Bills

The Connecticut legislature continues to consider three pieces of legislation that could alter the state’s gaming law.

Connecticut is one of the few states in the United States of America that permits online sports betting and casinos. Crypto iGaming remains a grey area despite President Trump’s pro-crypto stance.

The Legislative Commissioners’ Office of the Connecticut General Assembly will consider three bills that could impact existing rules and regulations in the state after favorable recommendations by the state’s Joint Committee on General Law.

Maximum Sports Betting Amount and Toll-Free Support

Senate Bill 1464 passed through the General Law Committee by a resounding 21 to 0 vote.

The multi-faceted bill focuses on amendments to the state’s sports betting laws. If passed, it would require a gaming licensee to provide toll-free assistance numbers for customer service regarding wagering platforms and accounts.

The bill reads that it would be mandatory to: “Establish a toll-free telephone number to (A) enable a person to receive assistance…(B) enable an owner of an account… to receive assistance.”

It also mandates action on errors in sports wagering odds and requires operators to “conspicuously display the maximum sports wagers established for online sports wagering.” The upper limit amount is not outlined, but would be later decided.

Lottery Couriers and Sweepstakes Operators Under Fire

SB 1235 was submitted by the General Law Committee rather than by an individual Senator. The bill proposed banning lottery courier services and lottery ticket resales. It also proposes banning “stimulated online casino gaming or sports wagering,” specifically targeting online sweepstakes operators.

The bill has been amended since its inception, with proposals now permitting the governor to enter into multi-jurisdictional deals to host peer-to-peer online casino games. This would likely only apply to progressive jackpot slot games or online poker platforms where increased liquidity provides a better product.

Collegiate Advertising in Connecticut Could be Outlawed

Committee Bill 5271, introduced by the House General Law Committee, would prohibit gaming-related advertising and promotional activities at Connecticut public higher education institutions.

Connecticut lawmakers have submitted a bill seeking to restrict gambling-related advertisements in public higher education institutions. The bill would prohibit “publishing, airing, displaying or disseminating gambling ads” on the campuses of state public universities and colleges.

The bill was met with mixed reactions, although lawmakers’ failure to discern between direct and passive advertising could damage university revenue streams.

In testimony, Neil Eskin, Executive Associate Athletic Director at the University of Connecticut, commented: “We are asking that you consider the difference between passive advertising and the direct solicitation of students by entities that operate in the gaming space. UConn is categorically against direct solicitation of students by or on behalf of these entities, but practices such as displaying the Mohegan Sun logo on the floor of Gampel Pavilion and displaying logos of Mohegan Sun and the Connecticut Lottery in the arena are standard practice in our industry and critical to financial viability.”

He concluded: “We firmly believe that this legislation intends to prohibit gambling companies from soliciting students directly, especially those who are not of legal age, to engage in such activities. If so, we request that this be made clear in the final language so we don’t unintentionally limit an institution’s ability to generate much-needed revenue.”