Despite bipartisan and industry support, North Carolina state Rep. Jason Saine recently pulled his fantasy sports bill from consideration just before it was scheduled for a committee vote. The same bill failed in a different committee last year. Saine said he worked closely with fantasy sports companies to write the measure which “protects consumers and allows for an increasingly popular industry to grow in our state.” He added the legislation bans players under age 18 and requires operators to register with the state and pay fines for violations.
Opposition included Christian groups who claimed the measure would expand gambling, although industry officials noted fantasy sports require more skill than luck. Reverend Mark Creech, president of the Christian Action League, said fantasy sports are a type of gambling and “moral erosion,” and urged legislators to vote against the bill.
State Reps. Mary Belk and Deb Butler said if the state decides to regulate fantasy sports, operators should pay fees to fund programs to help problem gamblers. “There’s nothing in here. We’re not asking these people who are benefiting from people playing to make sure people get help,” Belk said.
As a result, fantasy sports will remain in a legal but gray area in North Carolina, where players may be any age and major media companies like ESPN and Yahoo! Along with DraftKings and FanDuel run fantasy sports games for the NFL and other sports leagues. State Rep. Kelly Alexander said, “Whether it’s gambling or not gambling, it’s going on. It’s a reality. At least in my district, I’m told that some 20,000 to 25,000 people are participating in fantasy sports. We ought to at least start a regulatory framework, we ought to have some elementary protections to make sure that minors are not involved. So to vote against this measure is to vote in favor of the Wild West.”
