Minnesota lawmakers are looking to shut down sweepstakes casinos.
Senators Jordan Rasmusson, John Marty, Erin Maye Quade and Matt Klein introduced Monday Senate File 4474, which aims to outlaw dual-currency games that simulate sports betting and casino-style gambling.
Rasmusson, Marty and Maye Quade have been outspoken opponents of sports betting legalization in Minnesota. Klein, meanwhile, was a key sponsor of sports betting legislation last year.
SF 4474 would make it a felony to offer or promote sweepstakes casinos. It would also make supplying services, like payment processing, to sweepstakes operators a felony.
Along with SF 4474, the sponsors also introduced Senate File 4511, which aims to prevent prediction market operators from offering trade on sports, political events and other items like catastrophe and war. It would make offering those markets a felony.
Minnesota sweepstakes ban proposal
The legislation defines online sweepstakes games as any game, contest of promotion that utilizes a dual-currency system and simulates gambling, allowing the customer to exchange a currency for a prize, award or cash.
It also defines dual-currency as a system that allows customers to participate in simulated gambling for direct or indirect consideration.
If passed, people and companies would be prohibited from operating or promoting sweepstakes games. Beyond operators, the bill also explicitly mentions:
- Payment processors
- Geolocation providers
- Game providers
- Media affiliates
Building on AG action
The legislation builds on cease-and-desist letters Attorney General Keith Ellison sent last year to 14 unregulated gambling operators, including sweepstakes sites like Fortune Coins, LuckyLand and Zula Casino. SF 4474 expands regulatory power to deny licenses if revenue is tied to sweepstakes and enforce penalties.
“Online platforms offering sportsbooks and casino games run by out-of-state and overseas operators may make it look as though online gambling is legal and safe in Minnesota, but let me be clear: it is not,” Ellison said at the time. “Trying to rebrand poker chips as virtual currencies does not change the fact that these operations are unlawful.”
Ellison’s letters said the sites might violate state gambling and consumer-protection laws. They demanded written confirmation of reception within 10 days of reciving the letters and complete withdrawal from the state by December 1, 2025.
The three sweepstakes casinos included in Ellison’s letters have not ceased operations in Minnesota. However, in December, Betty Sweeps did shut down its purchases in the state. Several other companies also ended their availability in Minnesota, including:
- Hacksaw Gaming
- Nolimit City
- Playson
- Print Studios
2026 sweepstakes bill progress
Last year, six states took legislative action against sweepstakes casinos, including California, New Jersey and New York. Multiple other state regulators also took action against unregulated operators, sending hundreds of of cease-and-desist letters.
Last week, Indiana Gov. Mike Braun signed a sweepstakes ban into law, the first such legislation this year to cross the finish line.
In Mississippi, a sweepstakes ban bill failed for the second year in a row. The Mississippi Senate was the first legislative chamber in the U.S. to pass a prohibition bill last year.
A few other states are still considering bans this year, including in:
- Maryland
- Tennessee
- Virginia
