Legislators in Kentucky are considering raising the age to bet on sports from 18 to 21. Additionally, they are looking to ban prop bets on Kentucky college athletics.
Lawmakers in the House already passed HB904 after months of work by lawmakers on the issue. Proponents argue that an “overwhelming majority” of Kentucky residents believe the age to bet should be raised.
“I’m a strong believer in, if you’re 18 and you’re an adult by every other standard, you should be an adult by all standards,” Primary sponsor Rep. Michael Meredith (R) told the Kentucky Lantern. “They want the age raised, and so we did it, despite my personal concerns about that.”
Bill Allows Horse Tracks To Offer Fixed Odds
Politicians wanted to ban prop bets in the wake of several NCAA betting scandals. In fact, association officials pleaded for lawmakers to ban these type of wagers on college sports.
The bill also licenses and regulates fantasy sports operators and allows horse tracks to offer fixed-odds betting in addition to traditional pari-mutuel wagering.
Additionally, sportsbook, fantasy sports, and horse track operators would be barred from engaging in the prediction market business.
“Prediction markets have started moving into the space of betting on ball games, sporting events, and even prop bets on athletics as well,” said Meredith, who sponsored the state law legalizing sports betting in 2023.
“There has been a large-scale discussion at the national level, led by states across the country, on what is the place for regulation in these markets. Should states be able to regulate those sports-related event contracts? And we still don’t know the answer to that yet.”
The bill now heads to the Senate after being passed in a 79-15 vote in the House.
Prediction Markets Continue Fights With States
Prediction market firms offering sports event contracts have become controversial over the last year. The companies argue that their offerings differ from traditional sports betting and that they are regulated solely at the federal level by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
That has led to several court cases involving state gaming regulators. A federal judge in Ohio recently ruled that Kalshi must follow state gaming laws. This week, Arizona became the first state to file criminal charges against an event contracts platform.
In January, a state judge in Massachusetts also granted a preliminary injunction against Kalshi, barring it from offering sports contracts in the state. Regulators in Tennessee sent cease-and-desist letters to three prediction market companies.
Federal lawmakers have also been critics of the industry. In September, several legislators sent a letter to the CFTC calling for reform. The legislators raised questions about whether the contracts were simply end-runs around state sports betting laws. They pointed to a lack of compliance with betting age requirements and other rules that legal sportsbooks must adhere to.
