A Florida Senate committee passed a bill that proposes penalties for gaming operators running illegal sports betting and sweepstakes sites, in addition to other forms of online gambling the state’s Seminole Tribe doesn’t offer.
Florida Senate Bill 1404 Calls For Stricter Penalties For Illegal Gaming Operators
Members of the Florida Senate’s Regulated Industries Committee met March 25 and reported an amended version of Republican Sen. Corey Simon’s Senate Bill 1404 by an 8-0 vote.
The bill proposes stricter penalties for illegal gambling operators, including making it a third-degree felony to operate or promote wagering on an event knowing the results “are prearranged or predetermined.”
SB 1404 would also make “Internet gambling” and “Internet sports wagering” a misdemeanor offense for bettors. The measure calls for “an outstanding declaratory statement” to avoid misleading bettors as well.
The bill’s definition of internet gambling is playing a game “in which money or other thing of value” is won by chance and simulates “casino-style gaming,” such as slot machines and table games.
Sweepstakes casinos could be classified as such, as well as offshore casino gambling sites. The measure includes betting money or any “other thing of value.”
Violators Would Receive A Third-Degree Felony For Operating An Illegal Gambling House
Despite sweeps using a “dual currency” system that lets players play for free, the operators also allow users to wager and win real money by buying virtual coins.
Social casinos encourage players to purchase virtual Gold Coins that can later be redeemed for cash prizes. Both Gold Coins and Sweep Coins are available for players to purchase, but neither currency holds real-world cash value.
Simon, who played eight seasons in the NFL as a defensive lineman, told the committee the bill would make it a third-degree felony to operate a gambling house.
“Illegal gambling in Florida is a growing crisis,” the state senator said. “Illegal gambling operations are spreading across Florida, exploiting weak penalties to operate with little fear or consequences. Adult arcades with blacked-out windows are multiplying, run by criminal organizations that treat minor fines as the cost of doing business.”
SB 1404 will essentially ban all non-Seminole forms of online gambling.