The third known sweepstakes casino has left California surrounding the passage of Assembly Bill 831, which outlaws sweeps casinos in the state and criminalizes any entities that “knowingly and willfully” support the industry.
Ruby Sweeps informed players it would be formally exiting California last week. Its last day of service in California was Sept. 25, and players had until that day to play and redeem any Emeralds — the site’s equivalent of Sweeps Coins — in their account.
Carnival Citi became the first known sweeps gaming site to depart California following the unanimous passage of AB831 on Sept. 12. High 5 Casino also shut down its operations in California in early September, although High 5 is also embroiled in a lawsuit that actually has some legs in the state, so its California exit may have also been due to that.
Ruby Sweeps’ exit, as well as Carnival Citi’s, suggests that at least a handful of sweeps casinos do not believe Gov. Gavin Newsom will veto AB831 and they are getting ahead of the game in preparing for a future without California revenue.
To sign, or not to sign?
AB831, which was gutted and amended to its new and final version in June, passed through its abbreviated steps in the California Legislature, culminating in a unanimous approval in the Assembly on Sept. 12.
Now, the legislation sits on Newsom’s desk, where he has until Oct. 12 to make a decision. He has three options:
- Sign the bill into law.
- Take no action by Oct. 12, which would have the same effect as signing the bill.
- Veto the bill.
Recent comments from a leader in the tribal gaming industry suggest Newsom may choose to not sign the bill … but not veto it either.
In the Sept. 24 edition of his The New Normal webcast, Victor Rocha, the chairman of the Indian Gaming Association, told viewers he anticipates Newsom will let the deadline for action on AB831 come and go.
Why?
A quest for the White House, Rocha suggested.
“Right now, I would say he lets this thing go,” Rocha said. “He doesn’t sign it, it becomes law, and everybody wins except the sweepstakes.
“He wants to be president, man, you know what I mean? He wants to be president. He doesn’t want to piss off the 18-to-35 demo.”
In a recent interview with Sweepsy, however, Princeton Public Affairs Group partner Bill Pascrell III, an influential gambling industry attorney, lobbyist and advisor, suggested it was in the realm of possibility that Newsom listens to sweeps stakeholders and vetoes the bill.
“Governor Newsom is a very smart, adept, nimble guy, and I think he appreciates the potential if this is regulated,” Pascrell III said.
‘We implore Governor Newsom to veto this bill’
While they have also recently directed some of their resources to lobbying New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to veto the sweeps ban bill in her state, sweeps stakeholders are still fighting their fight in California, urging Newsom to reject the bill, which would take effect Jan. 1, 2026.
If California becomes off-limits for sweeps operators, they’ll lose out on 17.3% of the United States sweeps casino market, according to a recent analysis from independent gaming research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming.
In fact, Eilers & Krejcik analysts lowered their 2025 sweeps revenue projection from $4.6 billion to $4 billion with California off the table, and their 2026 projection fell even more to $3.6 billion.
“It is incredibly disappointing that the California Assembly decided to pass AB 831,” Jeff Duncan, executive director of the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance, said in a statement. “Beyond the fact that this bill would worsen economic disparities among California tribes, put California to the back of the line in terms of digital innovation in this space, and take away a popular form of entertainment for residents, it will immediately strip $1 billion out of the state’s economy.
“We implore Governor Newsom to veto this bill and instead open the door for online social games to support economically disadvantaged tribal nations and the state’s economy while positioning California as a leader in next-generation gaming technology.”
Ruby Sweeps has been active on the exit front lately
Ruby Sweeps, one of the minority of sweeps sites that are 21-plus instead of 18-plus, has been steadily retreating from the U.S. market, reacting in line with legal and regulatory restrictions emerging in a handful of states. Arizona was its latest exit before California.
On Sept. 5, Ruby Sweeps notified Arizona players it was shutting down there. That was in response to the Arizona Department of Gaming sending its third string of sweeps cease-and-desist letters in August (even though Ruby Sweeps didn’t receive one).
This followed earlier departures in Nevada and Mississippi, due to a bill passing in Nevada that strengthened enforcement against sweeps casinos and a cease-and-desist letter getting sent to Chumba Casino in Mississippi.
West Virginia has also since joined the list of states where Ruby Sweeps no longer operates. The state has taken an aggressive stance against sweepstakes casinos. Its Attorney General subpoenaed several operators back in February, and because West Virginia is also a regulated iGaming market, some sweeps companies have opted to stay out entirely.
The full list of 20 excluded states for Ruby Sweeps is now as follows:
- Arizona
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Idaho
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New York
- New Jersey
- Ohio
- Rhode Island
- Utah
- West Virginia
- Washington
