US senators introduce federal bill on sports betting

Two US Senators—Senator Charles Schumer, from New York, and Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah—have introduced a new federal bill to regulate sports betting. The bill proposes standards for the states that offer sports betting in their jurisdiction. If the Senate approves the bill, the Justice Department will adopt the standards, which would lead to more federal control over sports betting operations across the country.

They have been trying to get, it does not prohibit integrity fees either.

“I knew that Congress had an obligation to ensure that the integrity of the games we love was never compromised,” Schumer said of the Sports Wagering Market Integrity Act of 2018. “That is why I believe the time is now to establish a strong national integrity standard for sports betting that will protect consumers and the games themselves from corruption.”

Hatch revealed that he has been working with stakeholders in order to “protect the integrity of sports from corruption” ever since the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in May.

“The legislation we’ve introduced today is the culmination of eight months of high-level meetings, discussions, and negotiations, and will serve as a placeholder for the next Congress, should they decide to continue working to address these issues,” said Hatch.

Moreover, the National Football League (NFL) released a letter supporting the senators’ bill and said: “The threats posed to the integrity of sporting contests cannot be confined within state borders. Without continued federal guidance and oversight, we are very concerned that sports leagues and state governments alone will not be able to fully protect the integrity of sporting contests and guard against the harms Congress has long recognised as being associated with sports betting.”

As per the bill, the operators have to use information provided or licenced by the leagues. Leagues like the NBA and MLB have also made private agreements with casinos for use of data.

A National Sports Wagering Clearinghouse will also be created by the legislature to receive and share sports betting data and suspicious transaction reports among operators, state regulators, organisations and federal and state law enforcement.