H 4431, the bill looking to create regulated online casino gaming in Massachusetts, has failed.
Instead, the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies voted 11-0 to turn it into a study, meaning it will not progress any further during the current session.
The main thrust of the bill was indeed full iGaming legalization, which would have brought MA in line with the other eight states where the vertical is legal (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia).
As part of this, online sweepstakes casinos would have been made illegal, shoring up the line between regulated and non-regulated forms of online gaming. Sweeps operators and their supply chains can now breathe a sigh of relief, with the vast majority of sweeps brands currently active in the Bay State.
Originally filed in August last year by Representative David Muradian, H 4431 was given an extended reporting deadline in December, signalling lawmakers weren’t yet ready to decide on its fate. However, news came out this week that the bill has been referred to study, despite the extension.
Muradian has gone on record to state he will refile another similar bill in the future:
“The momentum H4431 created this session will hopefully serve as a springboard to future economic growth in Massachusetts, while always focusing on consumer protections and safeguards.”
Bills often get referred to study as a ‘soft kill’, avoiding a full rejection vote. It’s very similar to what happened in Virginia over the last week, with iGaming bills HB 161 and SB 118 also experiencing the same fate at the close of the VA session.
If we’re keeping a tally so far this year, we have one state with an anti-sweeps bill that’s passed (Indiana), and four states with failed anti-sweeps bills (Florida, Virginia, Mississippi, Massachusetts). Others remain active in Maine, Maryland, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Minnesota.
Author: Mike F.
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