The Connecticut Senate’s General Law Committee unanimously passed Senate Bill 1235 by a vote of 22-0 in March after it was introduced in February. The bill was then filed with the Legislation Commissioner’s Office.
Connecticut Senate Bill 1235 Would Ban Sweepstakes Operators
Last week, the Connecticut Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill with a unanimous 37-0 margin. The bill has now successfully advanced to the Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis for a May 5 review.
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 be guilty of a Class D felony. Those crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Louisiana Senate Unanimously Approved SB 181
Moreover, sweepstakes casinos are free-to-play online gaming platforms that operates 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, usually Gold Coins (GC) and Sweeps Coins (SC).
Although sweeps operators do not require players to gamble with real money, the online platforms still allow players to redeem their virtual coins for real money or prizes.
This news comes on the heels of the Louisiana Senate unanimously approving SB 181 in a 39-to-0 vote to ban sweepstakes gambling and penalize operators, affiliates, suppliers, and investors.
SB 181 requires the La. Gaming Control Board (LGCB) and the La. State Police (LSP) to enforce the provisions of proposed law. The bill proposes fines up to $100,000 per occurrence and prison terms up to five years for violators.