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State of Play’s TL;DR
- D.C. Councilmember Wendell Felder has filed B26-0656 to legalize online casino gaming while banning sweepstakes-style casino games.
- The proposal aims to modernize the district’s gaming framework and capture revenue currently moving outside local oversight.
Councilmember Wendell Felder introduced Bill B26-0656 to legalize internet casino gaming in Washington, D.C., while simultaneously seeking to outlaw sweepstakes casino games.
Felder framed the bill as a “practical, data-informed approach to strengthening consumer protections, modernizing our gaming framework, and capturing revenue that is currently flowing outside of the district’s oversight.”
D.C. legalized mobile sports betting in 2019, with an expanded push under the Sports Wagering Amendment Act of 2024. The city currently supports five licensed digital wagering operators after PENN Entertainment’s theScore Bet left the market in late February.
The new measure would create a regulated real-money online casino market and remove the legal foothold for sweepstakes operators that have operated in a “gray area” of the law.
Online casino market could bring in major operators
The bill could deliver a regulated online casino experience with clearer consumer protections and state oversight.
Legalized online casinos typically bring responsible gambling tools, standardized age and identity checks, and complaint channels – benefits players don’t reliably get from sweepstakes products. Operators would face licensing, compliance, and tax requirements, shifting revenue that currently bypasses D.C. regulation into the legal market.
This could mean:
- More regulated table and slot-style offerings for local bettors
- Fewer sweepstakes-style promotions and sweepstakes operators marketing to D.C. residents
- New market access opportunities for operators prepared to meet licensing rule
The exit of theScore Bet underlines the volatility of small digital markets. A new online casino regime may attract larger operators but will also raise the bar for compliance and operating costs.
The bill must move through council committee hearings, potential amendments, and full council votes before becoming law; timelines are currently unspecified.
Based on reporting by Chris Altruda for Casino Reports.
