NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8554
SPONSOR: Ortiz TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and
breeding law, in relation to giving the New York state gaming commission
jurisdiction over fantasy sports gaming
PURPOSE:The purpose of this bill is to give the state gaming commis-
sion jurisdiction over fantasy sports gaming.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Subdivision 5 of section 101 of the racing,
pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, as added by section 1 of part A
of chapter 60 of the laws of 2012, is amended and a new subdivision 7 is
added to add "fantasy sports gaming" to the definition of "gaming activ-
ity."
"Fantasy sports gaming" is defined by the bill to mean any gaming
conducted over an internet website in which game winnings are paid to
participants based upon the outcomes of games played by virtual teams of
real players of a professional sport, where such teams are assembled by
such participants and the outcomes of games are determined by the
statistical performance of such real players in actual games.
JUSTIFICATION: Allegations surrounding insider information available
to employees of the fantasy sports giants FanDual and DraftKings has led
to an inquiry by the Attorney General and resulted in a raft of ques-
tions raised by the press. Fantasy sports are legal in New York and 44
other states but are largely unregulated; however, Nevada's Gaming
Control Board has ruled that only incumbent Nevada casinos can offer
fantasy sports and betting on fantasy sports is illegal in Arizona,
Iowa, Louisiana, Montana and Washington. According to a New York Times
article, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which
was passed in 2006 to regulate online gambling, carved out an exemption
for fantasy sports because they are deemed "skill games."
In light of this exemption and the recent questions raised about the
transparency, fairness and security of the fantasy sports companies'
data about their rosters, it is appropriate to put added consumer
protections in place by giving the state's gaming commission regulatory
authority over this type of gaming. The gaming commission has authority
over any form of legal gaming in the state, including pari-mutuel wager-
ing, both on-track and off-track (betting), bingo and charitable games
of chance and the state lottery for education. Adding fantasy sports to
that list is both reasonable and justified given existing authority over
similar types of gambling and it would help prevent unfair practices in
this booming multimillion dollar industry.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None
EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8554
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
October 30, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ORTIZ -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Racing and Wagering
AN ACT to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, in
relation to giving the New York state gaming commission jurisdiction
over fantasy sports gaming
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 5 of section 101 of the racing, pari-mutuel
2 wagering and breeding law, as added by section 1 of part A of chapter 60
3 of the laws of 2012, is amended and a new subdivision 7 is added to read
4 as follows:
5 5. "Gaming activity" shall mean the conduct of any form of legalized
6 gaming, including, but not limited to, Class III gaming under the Indian
7 Gaming Regulatory Act, 25 U.S.C. § 2701 et seq., pari-mutuel wagering,
8 both on-track and off-track, fantasy sports gaming, bingo and charitable
9 games of chance and the state lottery for education.
10 7. "Fantasy sports gaming" shall mean any gaming conducted over an
11 internet website in which game winnings are paid to participants based
12 on the outcomes of games played by virtual teams of real players of a
13 professional sport, where such teams are assembled by such participants
14 and the outcomes of games are determined by the statistical performance
15 of such real players in actual games.
16 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13077-03-5
