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An omnibus piece of legislation that aims to ban sweepstakes gaming in Indiana is heading to the Senate after the House voted strongly in favor of passing the law.
Indiana House members voted 87-11 to advance House Bill 1052, a bill sponsored by Rep. Ethan Manning that bans the operation of online sweepstakes games that leverage a dual-currency or multi-currency system of payment. The House’s approval sends the measure to the Senate after some amendments, which included adding the language of “multi-currency.” A previous iteration only included language regarding dual-currency systems of payment.
The bill was also amended to remove a provision that would have criminalized the operation of sweepstakes games. Instead, offenders under the bill would be subject to a civil penalty of $100,000. The penalty can be levied against an individual or an operator. Unlike some bills in other states, HB 1052 does not include penalties for affiliates or suppliers working with sweepstakes sites.
The regulator responded to calls for regulation by claiming that sending cease-and-desist orders to sweepstakes game operators would not be “in good faith, based on current law.”
A lawmaker, Rep. Steve Bartels, suggested an amendment to HB 1052 that would regulate sweepstakes operators. Bartels’ suggestion did not gain support, leading to a full online sweepstakes ban advancing in the House.
An omnibus piece of legislation that aims to ban sweepstakes gaming in Indiana is heading to the Senate after the House voted strongly in favor of passing the law.
Indiana House members voted 87-11 to advance House Bill 1052, a bill sponsored by Rep. Ethan Manning that bans the operation of online sweepstakes games that leverage a dual-currency or multi-currency system of payment. The House’s approval sends the measure to the Senate after some amendments, which included adding the language of “multi-currency.” A previous iteration only included language regarding dual-currency systems of payment.
The bill was also amended to remove a provision that would have criminalized the operation of sweepstakes games. Instead, offenders under the bill would be subject to a civil penalty of $100,000. The penalty can be levied against an individual or an operator. Unlike some bills in other states, HB 1052 does not include penalties for affiliates or suppliers working with sweepstakes sites.
Sweepstakes regulation vs. ban in Indiana
The Indiana Gaming Commission currently does not consider the offerings illegal despite support of HB 1052. The commission’s failure to explicitly prohibit the operation of online sweepstakes sparked discussions between lawmakers in committee sessions for the bill about whether to ban the offerings or regulate them.The regulator responded to calls for regulation by claiming that sending cease-and-desist orders to sweepstakes game operators would not be “in good faith, based on current law.”
A lawmaker, Rep. Steve Bartels, suggested an amendment to HB 1052 that would regulate sweepstakes operators. Bartels’ suggestion did not gain support, leading to a full online sweepstakes ban advancing in the House.
