Two Nevada congressmen have introduced legislation to make prediction market contracts that resemble sports wagers illegal.
A bipartisan effort by Reps. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., and Mark Amodei, R-Nev., would stop federally regulated trading platforms from offering sports betting and casino-style gambling under the guise of financial products.
The Prediction Markets are Gambling Act is supported by union leaders and companion legislation was introduced in the Senate in March.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission contends that its status as a federal regulator supersedes state gaming regulatory oversight.
The legislation makes clear that the CFTC oversees legitimate financial markets — not sportsbook-style gambling or casino games. It closes a federal loophole that allows companies to bypass the licensing requirements, consumer protections, tax obligations and regulatory oversight that apply to legal gaming operators.
Protecting jobs
“This is about protecting jobs, protecting consumers, and protecting the integrity of our gaming industry,” Horsford said in a news release. “Nevada has always been the gold standard for gaming regulations. These companies are exploiting a federal loophole that allows them to effectively sidestep state oversight that every other legal sportsbook must follow. They’ve already cost states over $1 billion in lost gaming tax revenue money that should have gone toward funding schools, roads and critical programs. That’s why I introduced this bill to close the loophole, hold these companies to the same standard, and protect Nevadans.”
Nevada gaming regulators have been battling prediction markets for more than a year by taking companies to court. The Nevada Gaming Control Board has had limited success preventing companies like KalshiEx LLC and Polymarket from operating online within the state.
“Gaming policy has long been the responsibility of states and tribes, not unelected federal regulators,” Amodei said in a news release. “This bipartisan bill closes a federal loophole that allows sports betting to masquerade as financial trading and ensures legitimate event contracts remain under the CFTC’s jurisdiction.”
The Senate version of the legislation was introduced in March by Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., John Curtis, R-Utah, and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.
“Sports prediction contracts are sports bets — just with a different name.” Schiff said in a release. “And yet, these contracts have been offered in all 50 states in clear violation of state and federal law. Rather than enforce the law, the CFTC is greenlighting these markets and even promoting their growth. It’s time for Congress to step in and eliminate this back door which violates state consumer protections, intrudes upon tribal sovereignty and offers no public revenue. I’m proud to partner with Sen, Curtis, and Reps. Horsford and Amodei to put a stop to these illegal markets.”
Union support
Because prediction markets affect employment at legal sports books, union leaders have voiced their support for the legislation.
“We applaud Reps. Steven Horsford and Mark Amodei for introducing the Prediction Markets are Gambling Act in the U.S. House.” Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge said in a release.
“In Nevada, prediction markets are threatening the jobs of 60,000 Culinary Union members who are employed at casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, in downtown Las Vegas and in Reno,” he said. “We thank Sen. Adam Schiff for his leadership and Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and John Curtis for co-sponsoring the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act in the Senate. Culinary Union members have organized for nine decades for hospitality jobs to be good union jobs with fair wages, the best family health care benefits and a guaranteed retirement pension. We will not let out-of-state prediction market companies gamble that away. Congress must stand with hospitality workers and pass the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act.”
What legislation does
According to the lawmakers, the legislation:
-Draws a clear line between gambling and hedging: Prohibits sports and casino-style event contracts on federally registered exchanges. A wager on the Super Bowl does not become a financial product simply because it is offered through a trading app.
-Protects legitimate event contracts: Bona fide hedging instruments – weather, economic and similar contracts – remain untouched. A Los Angeles ice cream shop owner made headlines this week for using weather contracts to offset lost sales on cold days, covering nearly half his monthly rent. That’s hedging, and it stays under CFTC jurisdiction.
-Restores states’ rights and tribal sovereignty: Includes an explicit rule of construction that nothing in federal law preempts state or tribal authority over gaming. States and tribes remain free to set and enforce their own gaming policies.
-Ends wasteful rulemaking: By resolving the issue directly in statute, Congress avoids years of costly CFTC rulemaking and the litigation that would likely follow.
The bill also received support from the American Gaming Association, which has battled prediction markets since they first became popular in fall 2024.
“This important bill reinforces congressional intent that gaming is governed by state and tribal law.” AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said in a release. “The AGA applauds Reps. Horsford and Amodei for introducing the companion legislation to Sens. Schiff and Curtis. Together, these bills represent a bipartisan and bicameral effort to protect consumers, uphold state and tribal authority on regulating gaming, and stop so-called ‘prediction markets’ from offering backdoor sports betting that is siphoning billions of dollars in tax revenue from local communities across America.”
Gaming industry leaders have anticipated that a resolution to disputes over prediction markets eventually would be resolved through a U.S. Supreme Court decision.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.
