Sports betting industry targeted by new legislation in Connecticut, US

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko (NY-20) introduced the SAFE Bet Act, which would establish federal standards for sports betting regarding advertising, affordability, and artificial intelligence.

“This industry is growing astronomically and so is the problem of addictive gambling,” Blumenthal said. “The gambling industry knows it, exploits it, and we need to take action to reign in the excesses and abuses before they destroy a lot more families and people.”

The gambling industry, he added, is expected to grow by 30% this year, up from $26 billion to $35 billion.

“This industry targets losers. It does so methodically and scientifically using algorithms to track who’s betting, what they’re betting on, whether they’re winning or losing,” Blumenthal commented. “We need to impose safeguards and guardrails for this industry, and the way to do it is through a federal standard. The state standards for gambling are half baked and faint hearted.”

Blumenthal said the SAFE Bet Act would establish national standards through federal law that would restrict enticements that lure in gamblers and would forbid advertisements during certain hours.

“It used to be the little old lady at the slot machine that we were concerned about, now it’s 20 something males betting on sports,” said Diana Goode, executive director of the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling. “We’ve had people call who’ve said they’ve cashed out their 401k, they’ve taken a second mortgage on their home, they spent their kids college fund.”

By Amanda Pitts