- Democratic members of Congress introduced the SAFE Bet Act, requiring states to meet federal standards for marketing, affordability and artificial intelligence in sports betting. It would require affordability checks and ban personalized ads.
- The sports betting industry made $14 billion in revenue in 2024.
- The legislation is aimed at mitigating gambling addiction, which can afflict people much the same way as drugs and alcohol.
Full Story
March Madness is less than a week away and if it’s anything like last year, Americans will place more than $2.5 billion in bets on the tournament. That’s why two members of Congress introduced the SAFE Bet Act, a bill to regulate online sports betting which they hope will save vulnerable Americans from addiction and financial turmoil.
“It’s important to balance public health with competing economic interests. Trust me, I understand that,” said Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y. “But when every single solitary moment of every sporting event across the globe has become a betting opportunity in the palm of your hand, government must put its duty to protect its citizens from harm first.”
The SAFE Bet Act would require states offering sports betting to ensure operators meet minimum federal standards in three categories: marketing, affordability and artificial intelligence.
Marketing:
- Sports books can’t run ads during live sporting events, and can’t run programs designed to induce gambling like bonuses or odds boosts.
Affordability:
- Operators are prohibited from accepting more than five deposits from a customer in a 24-hour period.
- Operators are required to conduct affordability checks before betting $1,000 in 24 hours or $10,000 in 30 days.
- Credit card deposits will no longer be accepted.
Artificial intelligence:
- Prohibits the use of AI to track gambling habits and offer individualized promotions.
- Prohibits the use of AI to create gambling products, like microbets.
Other measures:
- Bans prop bets on college and amateur sports.
- Creates a national self-exclusion list through which people can voluntarily bar themselves from gambling.
Gambling as a $14 billion industry
The bill’s sponsors say it’s necessary because the amount of money Americans lose on bets increases every year. In 2024, the sports gambling industry made $14 billion in revenue.
“The reality is that $14 billion in revenue for the gambling industry is $14 billion extracted from the pockets of everyday Americans,” Tonko said. “And the even greater concern and the even greater reality is that most of that revenue is made off of the suffering of a disproportionately small number of gamblers.”
Combatting gambling addiction
Gambling is considered an addictive product.
According to the Mayo Clinic, gambling can stimulate the brain’s reward system much like drugs or alcohol, leading to addiction.
Andrew Douglas is one of the estimated 7 million people in the U.S. who have a gambling problem or disorder. He began betting in college –– bets his father described as small and innocent. However, Douglas’ gambling got so out of hand that he tried to take his own life on May 27, 2024.
“Gambling addiction had a hold of me and had taken me to the darkest hole that I could ever imagine,” Douglas said. “For years and years, constantly being targeted and no way to escape the advertising, the offers, the predatory and targeted business practices.”
Although he’s now in recovery, Douglas’ addiction is still a source of pain for his family.
“This addiction was hidden from us because it can be done on a telephone at any hour of the day and night,” Douglas’ father, Gordon Douglas, said. “There’s virtually no way to reach a safe time or place away from the possibilities of making a bet.”
The lawmakers say they do not want to stop sports betting. Rather, they are accusing the sports betting industry of exploiting addiction and purposefully driving people deeper into gambling abuse disorder.
“It’s a science. The algorithms, the artificial intelligence, are all tools to drive pitches and promotions at the losers, the most vulnerable, the people who are most susceptible to this addiction,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said.
The bill was introduced last year but it did not pass before the congressional term ended. Lawmakers are now starting the process again and have until January 2026 to get it approved.