Fresh off passing out of the House just before the crossover deadline, both Maryland sweepstakes casino ban bills have already received their first Senate hearing assignments.
House Bill 1226 is up first, with a March 31 hearing before the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee at 1 p.m. local time. Then, after that, House Bill 295 has an April 1 hearing before the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee at 1 p.m. local time.
Presumably, with the same committee hearing both bills over two consecutive days, committee members may select the bill they prefer to be the one they pass along to the next step in the legislative journey. Or, perhaps, they’ll elect to move both forward and let the next committees decide what to do.
Because the bills are, indeed, slightly different.
Maryland wouldn’t need to pass both bills
Both bills are designed to eliminate Sweeps Coin-style gameplay at sweepstakes casinos, but they go about it in separate ways.
HB1226 takes a direct and explicit approach. The bill specifically names “sweepstakes games” and incorporates them into an expanded definition of illegal online gambling. In the new language, online gambling includes a wide range of casino-style games — such as slot machines, table games, and video poker — as well as sweepstakes games.
It then clearly defines a sweepstakes game as one that uses a dual-currency system, where players can exchange one form of currency for cash, prizes, or equivalents, or for the chance to win them. That, in about as clear a fashion as possible, squarely targets the sweeps casino model.
HB295, on the other hand, takes a more indirect route. The bill never mentions sweepstakes gaming by name, but instead focuses on the structure of the games themselves. It classifies any online casino-style game that uses multiple forms of currency — where that currency can be exchanged for rewards — under the category of “interactive game,” which is effectively treated the same as online gambling.
The bill also defines “reward” broadly, including cash, prizes, or anything that can be converted into cash value. This is clearly aimed at the dual-currency system used by sweepstakes casinos, where Gold Coins can be purchased but can’t be redeemed, while Sweeps Coins cannot be bought but can be redeemed for cash or gift cards.
13 business days and counting
Maryland’s 2026 legislative session ends on April 13, leaving only a narrow window to push either bill across the finish line. Before then, both bills would need to:
- Clear a Senate committee.
- Progress through a second reading.
- Progress through a third reading, which would include a full chamber vote.
- Receive a new review in the House if the bill is amended at any point in the Senate.
- Be put through a conference committee if the House does not approve the changes made by the Senate to see if a compromise can be reached.
Even in the best-case scenario, is that a lot to do in 13 business days? Yes.
But is it feasible to clear all those steps in time? Certainly.
Ultimately, the fate of both bills may come down less to process and more to political will. Legislative leadership has the ability to fast-track bills it considers important. The fact that both bills were scheduled for their Senate committee hearings so quickly suggests Senate leadership is motivated to get one of these bills passed before April 13.
If that doesn’t happen, it would mirror the path that last year’s sweeps ban bill took in Maryland. Or, almost mirror it. That legislation, Senate Bill 860, passed through the Senate before stalling out in the House.
Update on Louisiana’s racketeering bill
In Louisiana, House Bill 53 unanimously passed through the House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice on Tuesday. And on Wednesday, it was ordered and engrossed and will fast track to its third reading, when it will have the opportunity to pass a full chamber vote.
Up next, it would head over to the Senate.
HB53 is an interesting bill because it’s completely unique from any bill we’ve seen in this two-year period of scrutiny on the sweepstakes casino industry.
It would (likely) classify sweeps gaming under racketeering law, as the bill would add “gambling by computer” and a handful of other gambling-related offenses to the list of racketeering crimes. And, based on interpretation of state law by Gov. Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill, a court could argue sweeps casinos are currently considered gambling by computer. (Or, if House Bill 883, which would officially outlaw dual-currency gaming, passes this session, then sweeps gaming would definitely be considered online gambling.)
Louisiana’s 2026 legislative session ends on June 1, and its crossover deadline (the date by which a bill must pass through its originating chamber) is May 29, so there’s plenty of time here.
Iowa inching toward granting more authority to regulator
Elsewhere, in Iowa, Senate File 2289 received its House Ways and Means Subcommittee assignment on Monday. The three-member subcommittee will now meet to discuss SF2289 and give their recommendation to the full House Ways and Means Committee.
If SF2289 passes through that committee, it will move onto the House for a full vote. And if it passes that stage, it will head to the governor for a signature.
SF2289 grants the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission the authority to issue cease-and-desist letters to sweepstakes casinos operating in Iowa. Currently, the IRGC only has the power to take action against the retail casinos, retail sportsbooks, and online sportsbooks it regulates.
