Congressman Paul D. Tonko (NY-20) sent letters to commissioners of seven professional sports leagues demanding that they support implementing federal gambling safety standards included in his SAFE Bet Act. Commissioners of the NBA, NFL, NHL, MLB, MLS, NWSL, and WNBA were the recipients of the letters.
The communication with leagues comes a week after the NBA gambling scandals became headline news. All of the letters state how “the reliance on self-policing has failed.”
“Claims of prioritizing integrity ring hollow when leagues have sold credibility to gambling operators, integrated betting content into broadcasts, normalized wagering for teenagers, glorified it in advertising, and then failed to prevent criminal conduct from taking hold within the sport,” Tonko wrote.
The Congressman is referencing Miami Heat player Terry Rozier being arrested for alleged illegal gambling. Chauncey Billups, head coach for the Portland Trail Blazers, was also taken into custody for allegedly participating in a rigged poker game.
Tonko reintroduced the Supporting Affordability and Fairness With Every Bet (SAFE Bet) earlier this year. It would include:
The SAFE Bet Act would also ban prop bets on all college and amateur athletes. NCAA President Charlie Baker has been leading the efforts to eliminate player prop bets, and made a statement last week that the Association still needs more states, regulators, and gaming companies “to help in this effort by eliminating risky prop bets to reduce opportunities for manipulation.”
Additionally, the SAFE Bet Act would eliminate sportsbook marketing during live sporting events. There will be no programming designed to induce gambling with “bonus,” “no sweat,” “bonus bets’” or odds boosts.
There are affordability components that would prohibit an operator from accepting more than five deposits from a player over a 24-hour period. Sportsbooks would be required to conduct affordability checks on customers before accepting a wager. Deposits made via credit cards would also be eliminated.
Tonko’s letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver opened with a reference to the recent arrests. It closed with an ultimatum:
“The choice before you is now explicit. Either engage directly with Congress to establish mandatory federal guardrails that restore integrity and protect the public or stand in opposition and accept responsibility when the next scandal breaks and more families and lives are destroyed.”
Letters to the other league commissioners were worded slightly differently, but closed with the same strong message. Because Silver is in charge of the league that’s at the center of the gambling scandals, he has been contacted by multiple politicians about how he plans to fix the problem.
He also received a letter from the Committee on Energy and Commerce that requested a brief from the NBA by today. The Committee is seeking answers on several topics, one of which is an explanation of the gaps, if any, in existing regulations that allow illegal betting schemes to occur.
Tonko is taking things a step further by attempting to bring seven pro sports leagues together to keep the integrity of sporting events intact. There is no telling if and when the next betting scandal will hit, but it’s something all parties involved are looking to avoid.
