Concerning protections against abusive practices in sports betting, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation.
SB26-131 is a Colorado sports betting regulation bill aimed at curbing practices the General Assembly characterizes as abusive or especially harmful to young people and people at risk of gambling disorder. It adds a definition for “push notification” and imposes new operating limits on internet sports betting operators, including a cap on the number of separate deposits an individual may make in a 24-hour gaming day, a ban on push notifications that solicit bets or deposits, and restrictions on accepting bets from people physically located in Colorado only. The bill also bars operators from offering or accepting proposition bets and from accepting credit card-funded deposits for sports betting.
The bill further tightens advertising rules. It prohibits sports betting operations and their marketing affiliates from targeting people under 21, from placing ads in media where the audience is expected to be mostly under 21, from including enhanced payout promotions or instructions on how to place bets in ads, and from broadcasting sports betting ads during certain daytime hours or during live athletic events. It also requires annual data submission by internet sports betting operators to the Division of Gaming, with the division to publish a public report every three years beginning in 2029, while keeping personally identifiable information confidential and exempt from open records disclosure.
The bill amends multiple provisions in Colorado’s sports betting statutes, primarily in Title 44, Article 30, by adding new definitions, operating restrictions, advertising prohibitions, reporting requirements, and enforcement tools. It creates a misdemeanor offense for violating the proposition-bet and credit-card deposit prohibitions, authorizes the Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission to assess penalties of up to $25,000 for violations, and updates license-enforcement provisions accordingly. It also modifies the sports betting fund distribution statute to require that annual transfers to the water plan implementation cash fund be at least as large as the prior fiscal year’s transfer, to the extent fund balances allow.
The bill appears to have been broadly supported in the legislative process, as reflected by its final status and enactment into law. The stated legislative findings frame the measure as a consumer-protection and youth-protection response to rapid growth in online sports betting, rising problem-gambling indicators, and concerns about aggressive advertising and financial harm. The overall tone of the bill is regulatory and precautionary rather than anti-sports-betting, seeking to preserve legal wagering while limiting practices viewed as exploitative.
The main points of contention are likely to have centered on the scope of restrictions placed on licensed operators, especially the limits on deposits, push notifications, advertising windows, and the ban on credit card deposits and proposition bets. Sports betting operators and marketing affiliates may view these provisions as burdensome or as limiting legitimate customer engagement and promotional activity, while supporters emphasize protection of minors, problem gamblers, and the integrity of sports betting markets. Another potentially sensitive issue is the bill’s requirement that sports betting revenue continue supporting the water plan implementation cash fund at no less than the prior year’s level, which ties gambling revenue policy to a separate state funding priority.