New York Rep. Paul Tonko and Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal lambasted the practices of US sports betting operators Sept. 12 as they introduced the SAFE Bet Act, which would establish a rigorous federal framework around digital sports wagering.
The SAFE Bet Act–short for Supporting Affordability and Fairness with Every Bet–would significantly alter the legal sports betting industry. It focuses on three A’s — affordability, advertising and artificial intelligence. The legislation would impose federal requirements for each.
It also notably calls for “a general nationwide prohibition” on sports betting. That would seem contradictory to the Supreme Court’s decision on PASPA, but Tonko said Thursday that the ruling was “explicit” in saying that “Congress retains the right to regulate sports gambling.” States would have to apply to the U.S. Attorney General to offer betting.
“We’re not telling states what to do,” Blumenthal said. “We’re setting a floor, a minimum they have to meet to have their applications certified. They have a lot of freedom within those parameters to do more.”
