A bill in the Connecticut legislature that would ban sweepstakes casinos and third-party lottery couriers is still alive and could become law in the Constitution State. Senate Bill 1235, filed in February, passed the Legislative Commissioner’s Office on Monday and is now headed for a vote in the full Senate.
Senate Bill 1235 Prohibits Sweepstakes Gaming, Ticket Courier Services
Last week, the Connecticut Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill with a unanimous 37-0 margin. The bill was then referred to the Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis.
SB 1235 would prohibit lottery ticket resales and ticket courier services, modify the Commissioner of Consumer Protection’s disciplinary authority concerning gaming licensees, require vendor and affiliate licensees to provide books and records, prohibit certain advertising, and authorize certain bets on boxing and mixed martial arts.
In addition, the measure would modify provisions concerning wagers on sporting events involving Connecticut intercollegiate teams, and provide that “certain persons conducting sweepstakes or promotional drawings shall not allow or facilitate participation in certain real or simulated online casino gaming or sports wagering.”
Any person who engages in illegal gambling would also be guilty of a Class D felony. Those crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Sweepstakes Sites Use Their Own Form Of Currency
Connecticut legalized online casinos in 2021, and DraftKings and FanDuel were the only licensed operators under deals with the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos.
Unlike traditional casinos, sweepstakes casinos are free-to-play online gaming platforms that operate under a legal framework in gray area. Sweeps offer players a chance to participate in casino-style games and win prizes using a promotional sweepstakes model.
Instead of real money, sweeps sites use a virtual currency, typically Gold Coins (GC) and Sweeps Coins (SC). Although sweeps operators do not require players to gamble with real money, the online platforms allow players to redeem their virtual coins for real money or prizes.
Connecticut Suspended High 5 Games’ License
In March, Connecticut pressed more than 1,000 criminal charges against sweeps operator High 5 Games for offering illegal gambling.
The Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) Gaming Division also suspended the operator’s license in the state as a service provider of online slot content.
High 5 Casino, High 5 Games’ sweepstakes site, announced in March that it would cease offering its games in the six states where online casino sites are regulated and legalized.
Those six states include Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.