Soon, I plan to introduce legislation that brings the burgeoning "prediction market" industry out of the shadows and under the gold-standard oversight of the
Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB).
Currently, Pennsylvania residents are participating in digital "event markets"—platforms that allow users to trade on the outcome of everything from economic shifts to political elections. Because these platforms often claim to be "financial derivatives" rather than gaming products, they currently bypass the rigorous safeguards we have spent decades building for our casinos and sportsbooks. This "regulatory arbitrage" leaves our constituents vulnerable and deprives the Commonwealth of significant tax revenue.
My legislation, the
Event Market Regulatory Act, mirrors the successful framework established by Act 42 of 2017 for sports wagering. Key components include:
- Robust Oversight: Grants the PGCB exclusive jurisdiction to license and audit all operators, ensuring markets are not manipulated.
- Fiscal Parity: Implements a 34% state tax and 2% local share assessment on gross revenue, ensuring these platforms contribute their fair share to the General Fund and local communities, just as our casinos do.
- Consumer Protection: Mandates the same strict Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols used by our regulated sportsbooks to prevent underage participation and financial crime.
- Responsible Gaming: Requires operators to integrate with the state’s Self-Exclusion List and provide users with deposit and loss-limit tools.
- Strong Enforcement: Empowers the Pennsylvania Attorney General to prosecute any unlicensed entities or violators of the Act.
We cannot allow "the Wild West" of unregulated digital trading to continue operating in a legal gray area. By passing this bill, we ensure that if these activities occur in Pennsylvania, they happen in a safe, transparent, and taxed environment.
Please join me in co-sponsoring this essential consumer protection and revenue-generating legislation.