Since mid-May, lawmakers in the United States have been busy working on legislation to get started in the sports betting industry. At that time, the US Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which allows every state to legalize sports betting if they so choose. As states get started in the industry, one lawmaker is calling for federal standards.
This week, New York State Senator Chuck Schumer, decided to issue a statement calling for federal standards to be put in place involving the sports betting industry. A bill has yet to be introduced but after the statement was made by the Senator, the NCAA as well as other sports leagues came out in support.
Schumer provided an outline as to what he wanted to see happen, including banning non-league data from being used to determining the betting outcomes. This would be a plus for the professional and college leagues as they would be able to sell their data to sports betting companies.
The proposal also suggested that leagues have a say so in what types of bets will be offered via sports books. Senator Schumer stated that he feels that after the ruling by the Supreme court, the federal government needs to take a leadership role and provide the guidance needed to prevent any uncertainty and confusion for state governments, leagues and consumers.
The American Gaming Association had something to say about the statement by the Senator, releasing a statement of their own. The AGA feels that federal oversight of sports betting ‘was an abject failure for 26 years’ which only worked to contribute to an illegal market where there were no safeguards or consumer protections.
Right now, there is no federal oversight in place and the AGA as well as operators do not want to see any regulations that would state otherwise.
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