Chumba Casino Can Stay in Florida as Sweepstakes Bills Fail

Sweepstakes casinos get to live another day....or many more days....in Florida as bills looking to ban the likes of Chumba Casino and High Five Casino has stalled in the state senate.

S 1404 filed by Sen. Corey Simon and including language that would ban online casino sweepstakes as well as a substitute bill attached to the original legislation failed to advance from the Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government.

Hard Rock bet is the only online gambling site regulated in Florida.  The Seminoles, who run Hard Rock Bet, are widely believed to be considering offering a real money online casino.

"The defeat of these bills continues a clear national trend,” said a spokesperson for the Social and Promotional Games Association in a statement released Monday. "In the past few weeks, similar bills have been rejected in Arkansas, Maryland, and Mississippi.

"Lawmakers across the country are rejecting these anti-innovation, anti-business efforts that attempt to dictate what games American adults can play on their phones.”

The second bill, CS/HB 1467, would have created criminal penalties for online sports betting conducted outside Hard Rock’s platform. 

State regulators have previously sent cease and desist orders to numerous sweepstakes casino operators.