After an initial rejection, an amended Senate Bill 118 passed through Virginia’s Senate General Laws and Technology Gaming Subcommittee on Wednesday, preserving the chances for legalizing iGaming and banning Sweeps Coin gameplay in the state.
The subcommittee initially rejected SB118 over concerns for overloading the state’s regulatory capacities and the social harm of expanding iGaming into Virginia.
However, on Wednesday, the bill’s sponsors submitted a substitute amendment that clarified the legislation. The new language states that the Virginia Lottery Board shall “promulgate regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this act.”
The new language was needed to give the Virginia Lottery Board the power. Initially, a planned Virginia Gaming Commission was set to regulate the expansion of iGaming into the state. But the VGC doesn’t exist yet; Senate Bill 195 and Senate Bill 558 must be passed first to create it.
SB118’s new language allows the current Virginia Lottery Board to regulate iGaming, just in case those two related bills don’t pass.
The amendment makes it crystal clear that the Board would “promulgate regulations to promote problem gaming prevention, identification, and curtailment.”
The new language also requires operators of the proposed iGaming to implement systems of responsible play, like pop-ups telling users how much time they’ve spent playing, and other ways to “initiate a break in play.” They would also limit the amount of money that can be deposited within a specific time period, and encourage those with gambling problems to seek help through 1-800-GAMBLER.
Sweeps casinos still on the chopping block
SB118 still bans sweepstakes casinos. The language reads:
“Except if conducted by a licensed internet gaming operator, offering or conducting a sweepstakes in which a person present in the Commonwealth may participate by paying or proffering something of value, including an entry fee for the opportunity to win or receive cash or a cash equivalent, shall constitute illegal internet gaming in violation of this section, and shall subject the operator or sponsor, or any officer, employee, or agent of the operator or sponsor, to civil liability under this section.”
Operators of these sweeps casinos will be fined $100,000 for the first offense, and $250,000 for the second and subsequent offenses.
If this legislation becomes law, any sweepstakes casino not licensed in Virginia would be illegal. If the legislation passes a full vote, expect operators to pull out of Virginia instead of risking these heavy fines.
What’s next for SB118?
The amendment was approved, 9-6.
State Senators Mamie Locke (who introduced the bill), Jeremy McPike, Todd Pillion, Aaron Rouse, Emily Jordan, Lashrecse Aird, Jennifer Carroll Foy, Christie Craig, and Angelia Williams Graves voted in favor of the changes.
With the vote, the Virginia GLT Committee then re-referred SB118 to the Finance and Appropriations Committee for further consideration.
SB118 is considered a “significant policy expansion,” which is why it needed to be fine-tuned. That’s why it failed to get out of subcommittee on the first go. Its language was sweeping and overly broad.
Elsewhere in gambling legislation news, House Bill 515, which prohibits the use of credit cards to fund sports betting, received approval from the House on its third reading on Jan. 28, per Next.io.
House Bill 145, which updates Virginia’s Fantasy Contest Act, also made it out of subcommittee. The bill was unanimously approved; if passed, it would tighten regulations for fantasy sports businesses operating in the state, create new rules to protect consumers, and require companies to pay a 10% tax on revenue from contests in Virginia.
It also tightens the definition of what constitutes a “fantasy” contest. It keeps it to games of skill and athletic stats, excluding “pick ‘em” or house-backed games that look like regular sports betting. How that would affect the growing prediction market remains to be seen.
