The National Council of Legislators from Gaming States (NCLGS) has formally backed keeping sports wagering and broader gambling policy under state control as prediction markets continue spreading across the United States.
Its Executive Committee unanimously approved a resolution during the group’s July meeting in San Diego. The measure points to the proliferation of prediction markets, where participants can stake money on political elections, economic indicators, sporting events and other real-world outcomes while largely operating outside the regulatory systems used for licensed sportsbooks, casinos and other legal gambling.
NCLGS supports states pushing back against federal oversight over prediction markets
NCLGS says prediction markets have become one of the biggest topics at its national meetings. To explore the issue, the organisation has brought together legal scholars, gaming regulators, industry executives, financial market specialists, attorneys and policymakers to examine whether sports event prediction contracts belong under federal commodities law or state gaming law.
“NCLGS exists to provide legislators with objective, substantive education on the most important issues facing gaming policy,” said Juliann Barreto, Chief Operating Officer of Spectrum Gaming Group, which serves as NCLGS Executive Director. “Prediction markets represent one of the most significant emerging issues confronting state policymakers, and we have ensured that our members hear directly from experts on all sides of the debate.”
The resolution arrives as a coalition of 44 state attorneys general is separately urging the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to withdraw and rewrite its proposed prediction markets rule. In comments filed with the agency, the attorneys general argued the proposal would improperly shift oversight of sports betting from state regulators to a federal body that Congress never authorized to police gambling.
The coalition said states have spent years building licensing systems, consumer safeguards, responsible gaming programmes, advertising standards and enforcement frameworks. It also argued sports wagers are not financial derivatives because they do not serve hedging or price-discovery purposes, making them unsuitable for regulation under the Commodity Exchange Act.
NCLGS said congressional hearings on prediction markets have further increased attention on the issue. The organisation believes those discussions reinforce the need to preserve the authority of states and tribal governments to regulate gaming within their own borders.
The group reaffirmed its long-held position that primary responsibility for gaming regulation should remain with individual states, adding that many legislators, regulators and tribal governments share that view. It also encouraged Congress and federal agencies to weigh the possible consequences for existing state and tribal gaming policies before taking further action.
Looking ahead, NCLGS said it will continue providing a national forum where policymakers can hear competing viewpoints, examine legal and regulatory developments, and shape public policy through evidence, expertise and respectful debate. The organization describes itself as the only national association of state legislators dedicated to gaming policy education and says its public meetings bring together lawmakers, regulators, operators, suppliers, attorneys, lobbyists, journalists and other stakeholders to discuss regulated and unregulated gambling issues.
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