More sweepstakes casinos are adjusting their promotional strategies in California as Assembly Bill 831 makes its way through the state legislature.
Per communication from their parent company’s partnerships division, Hello Millions, PlayFame, and Spin Blitz are requesting their affiliate partners stop promoting their sites to California players, effective July 22.
The parent company, B-Two Operations Ltd., is part of the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance and, alongside fellow SGLA member VGW, has seemingly tried to emphasize regulatory compliance and responsible gaming measures as the sweepstakes casino industry has become the center of scrutiny in the gambling industry in 2025.
B-Two Operations also owns McLuck, one of the most popular sweeps casinos in the United States other than Chumba Casino. The email said there is no current change required regarding affiliate promotions in California for McLuck.
While our news content is independent and functions separately from our site’s affiliate division, Sweepsy participates in B-Two Operations’ affiliate marketing program, which is how we obtained this information. We cannot confirm if this message was sent to all program members.
Following in MegaBonanza’s footsteps
Earlier this week, Sweepsy reported that MegaBonanza, owned by LuminaryPlay Operations Limited, was making a similar decision — ceasing its own promotions targeting California players and requesting affiliate partners pull back offers for MegaBonanza in California.
These moves are in direct response to AB831, which would not only ban online sweepstakes casinos in California but also criminally penalize entities — including affiliate partners — that “knowingly support directly or indirectly the operation, conduct, or promotion of an online sweepstakes game within this state.”
What’s next for AB831?
AB831 has already cleared two Senate committees — Governmental Organization and Public Safety — and has its third and final Senate committee hearing with Appropriations set for Aug. 18 at 10 a.m. local time.
The reason for the delay is the California Legislature’s summer recess, which spans July 18-Aug. 18. So, really, AB831 is getting its next hearing at the earliest possible time.
While there is lobbying work left to be done and AB831 isn’t at the finish line yet, its fast-track treatment so far suggests strong momentum for its passage by the Sept. 12 legislative deadline.
So operators like MegaBonanza and now B-Two Operations, at least with three of its platforms, are getting a headstart on regulatory compliance in a potential California future where AB831 becomes law.
If the Senate Appropriations Committee approves AB831, it will then go to the Senate for a full vote. If it passes there, it will return to the Assembly for a vote since it’s been totally changed from the version that passed in the Assembly in the spring. That version dealt with the tribal-state gaming compact process.
If the Assembly rejects the new version, a conference committee will be created to write a compromise draft, which would then need to pass both the Senate and the Assembly.
California’s legislative session ends on Sept. 12. Gov. Gavin Newsom has the option to call a special session after that date, though. Otherwise, AB831 can carry over to the 2026 session beginning in January without having to start the process over, thanks to California’s two-year legislative cycle
If AB831 does pass in this legislative session, unless it’s amended to become an urgency bill, it will go into effect Jan. 1, 2026.
B-Two Operations upped its age requirement earlier this year
Hello Millions, PlayFame, and Spin Blitz have not added California to their list of excluded states in their terms and conditions.
As of July 25, that list is:
- Alabama
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Montana
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- New York
- Washington
- West Virginia
It’s among the longer lists in the sweeps gaming industry, which indicates B-Two Operations strategic decision to prioritize regulatory compliance for the long term over short-term revenue gains at the cost of potentially incriminating itself in the eyes of regulators and lawmakers.
B-Two Operations made a similar long-term future vs. short-term revenue decision earlier this year when it raised its minimum age requirement from 18 to 21 across its sweeps casinos. This move came shortly after the SGLA announced its formation and membership, which included B-Two Operations alongside VGW — which had made its own age requirement shift from 18 to 21 a few months prior.
