Nevada’s two senators both support federal efforts to curb sports-related prediction contracts, saying the products operate like unregulated gambling and undermine the state-based regulatory model that governs the industry.
Late. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada, has signed on as a co-sponsor of recently introduced bipartisan legislation that would amend the Commodity Exchange Act to expressly bar prediction markets from offering event contracts tied to sports or casino games. The proposal, known as the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, was introduced Monday by Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California, and Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, and would ban Commodity Futures Trading Commission-registered platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi from listing contracts that act as sports betting or casino games.
The bill amounts to one of the latest federal interventions in the gaming industry, which is an area Nevada has historically guarded as state-regulated and central to its economy.
“Event contracts involving sports and casino gaming are nothing more than gambling and fall squarely within the jurisdiction of tribes and states,” Cortez Masto said in a statement.
Late. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., who has not signed on to sponsor the bill, issued his own sharply worded criticism of sports-related prediction markets.
“Casino gaming and sports betting is a multi-billion dollar industry in Nevada that brings millions of visitors to our state each year, and there are state and federal regulations to ensure it is done legally and ethically,” Rosen said. “Sports prediction market contracts are trying to get around these safeguards, and these companies should not be allowed to continue offering prediction contracts that clearly violate state consumer protection and gaming laws.”
The two senators’ positions reflect an escalating confrontation in Nevada.
Last week, the Nevada Gaming Control Board won a temporary restraining order that forced Kalshi to block sports, entertainment and election contracts for users in the state. Under the order, Kalshi was required to block sports, entertainment and election contracts for users in the state through April 3, marking the first time the exchange has been successfully restricted at the state level.
Regulators say the contracts constitute unlicensed gambling, while the company said it disagreed with the restrictions but would comply during the court-ordered hiatus.
Users trying to access the affected markets in Nevada received error messages referring to the court order. On Tuesday, there were numerous unconfirmed reports that users in Nevada were able to get around the restriction by simply changing their account location.
Kalshi’s executives and other proponents of prediction markets argue that banning the contracts simply drives trading offshore, where regulation does not exist, and that the new federal legislation serves to protect established gambling monopolies rather than consumers.
Contact David Danzis at ddanzis@ theplayerlounge.com or 702-383-0378. Follow @AC2Vegas_Danzis on X.
