A second state is on the verge of joining Indiana as the only jurisdictions to enact legislative bans on sweepstakes casinos this year.
On Thursday, the Maine House narrowly passed Legislative Document 2007 via an 87-55 vote. That means both chambers of the Maine Legislature have passed LD2007, which is among the most thorough, in-depth sweeps ban bills we’ve seen over this two-year stretch of scrutiny on the sweepstakes gaming industry.
The bill will now get sent to the office of Gov. Janet Mills for her signature.
If she signs LD2007, Sweeps Coin gaming will officially become outlawed in Maine on July 14, 2026 — 90 days after the 2026 legislative session ends on April 15.
Notably, the House elected to fast-track LD2007 on Thursday by forgoing sending it through another committee step, and instead sending it straight through to its final reading immediately.
There was opposition, but LD2007 still expected to become law
Despite the final-step fast-track, support for LD2007 wasn’t universal. In fact, after three hearings before the Joint Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee, lawmakers were unable to reach a consensus and issued a divided report in advancing LD2007 to the full Senate back in early March.
And the voting tally in the House speaks for itself — 87 yay votes to 55 nay votes.
Still, Mills is expected to sign the bill because it has the support of real-money iGaming operators, and Mills signed a bill earlier this year to legalize online casinos in Maine. It would make little sense for her to pave the way for iGaming legalization in her state (which is expected to officially go live in early 2027), and then veto a bill that outlaws what some iGaming operators deem illegal competition in sweepstakes casinos.
“With the passage of LD1164 last year and earlier this month, Maine has taken a step forward in legalizing a framework for online casino gaming that prioritizes consumer protection, responsible gaming and regulatory oversight,” said Kevin Cochran, Senior Director of Legal and Government Affairs at DraftKings, during one of LD2007’s hearings in January. “Unregulated sweepstakes-style casino platforms operate outside of that framework, drawing players away from licensed operators and undermining the intent of the law.”
Why LD2007 is unique among sweeps bans
LD2007 sets itself apart from other sweeps ban bills by drilling down into the structure of the dual-currency system itself, rather than addressing sweeps gaming in broader terms.
A key feature of the bill is how it categorizes the currency model into two forms of “consideration.”
It defines “direct consideration” as any coin, token, or unit of value that a player can purchase — or receive through a promotion — and then use to play in an online sweepstakes game.
Then, it defines “indirect consideration” as a unit of value that is provided for free, either through a promotion or with the purchase of a product or service, but can still be exchanged for cash, prizes, or the chance to win them.
That indirect consideration definition directly targets Sweeps Coins, which players at sweepstakes casinos cannot purchase but can acquire for free via other means — such as social media promotions or daily login bonuses — and they can be redeemed for real money.
But LD2007 goes beyond that, too.
It blocks players from purchasing any digital currency that can be redeemed for cash or cash equivalents. It also targets a common tactic from sweeps casinos: Encouraging users to spend money on services that are not themselves redeemable (Gold Coin bundles), but which grant access to a separate currency that is (the free Sweeps Coins that come with those bundles).
No other bill in any other market does as good of a job articulating the ins and outs of the Gold Coin and Sweeps Coin dual-currency gaming model employed by most sweepstakes casinos.
Under LD2007, the penalty for operating sweepstakes casinos in Maine would be a fine of no less than $10,000 and no more than $100,000, and that money would go toward the Gambling Addiction Prevention and Treatment Fund.
On the flip side …
While it’s looking like Maine will join Indiana as the two states to ban sweepstakes casinos so far during the 2026 legislative session, four states have seen similar efforts fail thus far.
Virginia saw its twin iGaming bills — which also included sweeps bans — fail after a conference committee couldn’t report a viable compromise to both chambers before the session ended on March 14.
In Florida, a bill whose change in the definition of internet gambling could have caused complications for sweeps casinos was approved by both chambers, but the House approved an amended version and the Senate ran out of time to approve those changes before the session ended on March 13.
A committee in Massachusetts on March 16 sent an iGaming bill to study. (And this bill also included a sweeps ban.) Essentially, this is just punting the topic to the future, as the current climate in Massachusetts is mostly anti-iGaming expansion.
And Mississippi saw a bill banning sweepstakes casinos fail for the second year in a row. This time, it stalled out in a House committee after passing relatively easily through the Senate.
