New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer started a push for a federal framework for sports gambling on Wednesday.
According to ESPN, the Senate minority leader drafted a memo filled with proposals for new sports betting rules that included mandating all sportsbooks to rely solely on official league information to predict outcomes. Schumer also suggested that major sports leagues themselves should also play a role in deciding which types of bets would be allowed. The senator’s suggested national framework is designed to streamline betting and prevent each state from having distinct laws pertaining to the issue.
Schumer also said he believed sports leagues should increase their supervision of illegal betting practices. However, the senator at no point brought up the issue of “integrity fees.”
Among the other proposals Schumer made in the memo included setting 21 as the minimum age in every state to place sports bets, and requiring betting organizations to not improperly advertise to underage people. The senator also said these types of groups should be forced to report suspicious activity that threatens the legality of betting.
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The consequences of these new laws could include people worrying that sports leagues become a monopoly and severely affect the competition level of the betting economy.
In a statement, Schumer stressed that his top goal regarding betting is that the “integrity” of the industry is not tarnished. He cited the Supreme Court’s Murphy vs. NCAA decision in May: a ruling that overturned the federal ban on state-sponsored sports betting that was instituted in 1992 as part of the Professional and Amateur Sports Act (PASPA). New Jersey was one of the first few states to recently legalize sports gambling, after Democratic Rep. Frank Pallone introduced a bill on the topic last December.
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The American Gaming Association released the following statement on Twitter in response to Schumer’s announcement:
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