Nevada is about to cross a legislation giving it higher energy to fight unlawful playing operations, each land-based and on-line.
Nevada is upping its recreation towards unlawful gaming. (Picture: Shutterstock)
Senate Invoice (SB) 256, launched by State Sen. Rochelle Nguyen (D-Las Vegas) in February, handed the Nevada Meeting by a 42-0 vote on Thursday, six weeks after passing the State Senate 20-0.
As soon as signed into legislation, the invoice will strengthen the Silver State’s powers to prosecute operators of unauthorized in-person playing amenities and on-line casinos, and considerably stiffen the penalties past the $50K nice that unlawful operators presently face.
SB 256’s provisions embody:
“It is a essential subject that impacts not solely the credibility of our gaming laws but additionally client protections and state revenues,” mentioned Nevada Janice Wong, the legislative intern for the invoice’s writer, Sen. Rochelle Nguyen (D-Las Vegas), throughout a listening to on the invoice in March.
“With the rise of on-line gaming apps, we’ve seen an growing variety of unlicensed platforms working within the shadows accepting unlawful wagers, participating in fraudulent practices, and profiting exterior the bounds of our regulatory framework,” Wong mentioned. “These unhealthy actors not solely undermine our authorized gaming trade but additionally put our customers in danger.”
Unlawful on-line casinos accepted greater than $400 billion in wagers in 2024, based on the American Gaming Affiliation, which price licensed US gaming operators greater than $17 billion in misplaced income.
One Extra Teeny Hurdle
As a result of the Nevada Meeting amended the invoice earlier than passing it, SB 256 should now return to the State Senate for concurrence earlier than being despatched to Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo’s desk to be signed into legislation.
Nevertheless, the Meeting’s solely modification was so as to add Assemblymember Brittney Miller’s title because the invoice’s co-sponsor, a transfer unlikely to face any resistance within the Senate.
The invoice has robust assist from the Nevada Gaming Management Board, the Affiliation of Gaming Tools Producers and the Nevada Resort Affiliation.
