Sweepstakes gambling will soon be illegal in the state of California after Governor Gavin Newsom signed off on a bill banning it.
Governor Newsom signed AB 831 into law on Saturday, with the ban set to go into effect on January 1. The new bill also prohibits platform, gaming content, and geolocation providers, along with financial firms, payment processors, and media affiliates, from facilitating sweepstakes gambling.
Despite strong opposition to AB 831 by sweepstakes trade body Social Gaming Leadership Alliance (SGLA), Newsom did not veto the bill.
Conference chair of the Indian Gaming Association (IGA) Victor Rocha controversially took to X to blame Chris Grove, the head of the Social and Promotional Gaming Association (SPGA), for the “humiliating” loss of sweepstakes:
The SGLA had claimed the bill could cost over $1bn in economic activity and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue per year.
maximum fines of $25,000
All those arguments are no more since the bill passed, with those caught in sweepstakes gambling after the New Year guilty of a misdemeanor and facing maximum fines of $25,000, up to 12 months in jail, or both.
The California Senate amended AB 831 in June into an anti-sweepstakes bill, which it passed on September 8. Taking the baton, the State Assembly passed AB 831 unanimously, 63-0, on September 12.
