Louisiana lawmakers advance racketeering bill
Louisiana lawmakers have advanced a bill that would make online sweepstakes casinos, as well as other illegal gambling operations, a racketeering offense.
House Bill 53, which was introduced to the House in January by Rep. Bryan Fontenot, first passed the House on March 30 with a vote of 87-11 following a third reading. It was then advanced to the Senate Judiciary C Committee on March 31.
After this, the bill continued to gain legislative momentum in the Senate. It was promptly referred to the Legislative Bureau, where it was returned to the House after a 29-7 vote in favor of the bill’s passage on April 27.
On April 29, the measure was signed by the House Speaker, and on May 4, it was signed by the Senate President. The bill now awaits the Governor’s signature.
If House Bill 53 is signed into law by the Governor, it would amend the Louisiana Racketeering Act to cover gambling-related crimes such as gambling in public, gambling by computer, gambling or wagering at cockfights, gambling by electronic sweepstakes device, unlawful wagers by a prohibited player, and bribery of sports participants.
If found guilty under the act, violators could face fines of up to US$1 million and up to 50 years in prison.
A separate gambling proposal that would have banned prop bets in the state also failed last month after its sponsor, Sen. Katrina Jackson-Andrews, pulled it due to projected revenue losses.
Charlotte Capewell brings her passion for storytelling and expertise in writing, researching, and the gambling industry to every article she writes. Her specialties include the US gambling industry, regulator legislation, igaming, and more.
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The Backstory
How Louisiana got here
Louisiana’s push to treat illegal gambling enterprises as racketeering reflects a steady escalation against offshore sportsbooks and sweepstakes casinos that operate outside the state’s regulatory perimeter. In recent months, the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, working with the attorney general and state police, has intensified enforcement against unlicensed platforms, issuing more than 40 cease-and-desist letters to offshore operators. That effort included a formal order targeting Harp Media, known as Bovada, signaling a coordinated crackdown on businesses that do not pay state taxes or meet consumer protection standards. The board framed the actions as necessary to protect residents and the integrity of the regulated market. That context helps explain why lawmakers are now moving to harden criminal statutes to address conduct that regulators say persists despite administrative pressure. For background on the enforcement wave, see the board’s campaign in Louisiana reinforces efforts against illegal sweepstakes casinos.
The sweepstakes model, often pitched as offering casino-style games with virtual currencies that can be redeemed for cash or prizes, has long operated in a gray zone. While state law already prohibits many forms of unlicensed gambling, enforcement can be fragmented when platforms are hosted offshore or routed through payment intermediaries. Folding gambling-related crimes into the state’s racketeering framework would give prosecutors broader tools to tie together schemes, pursue leaders and facilitators, and seek steeper penalties. The legislature’s appetite for that approach grew alongside visible regulatory steps and rising concern over illegal markets siphoning play from licensed operators.
A veto that reset the strategy
Lawmakers also responded to a recent policy detour. Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed a separate bill aimed at sweepstakes casinos that proposed fines and jail time for operators in breach of a ban. Although the bill cleared the House and Senate with bipartisan support, the governor argued the state already had sufficient enforcement authority and warned the measure’s language was too broad, potentially complicating ongoing actions. The veto did not endorse sweepstakes operators; it questioned the drafting and overlap with existing law. That episode reshaped the path forward and put a premium on tightening tools inside established frameworks rather than creating a parallel ban. The pivot is outlined in Louisiana governor vetoes sweepstakes ban.
By aligning new penalties with the racketeering act, lawmakers seek to avoid the pitfalls cited in the veto while still giving law enforcement leverage to disrupt illegal networks. The approach also dovetails with the gaming board’s active posture. If prosecutors can connect illegal gambling activity to money laundering, bribery or organized conduct across multiple actors, a racketeering charge can reach organizers even when storefronts, websites or payment channels are dispersed. That design aims to close the gap between the scale of modern online operations and case-by-case misdemeanors that may not deter sophisticated operators.
National momentum against risky bet types
The backdrop to Louisiana’s move includes a broader reckoning over where to draw the line in legal wagering. In Utah, a state that already bans gambling, lawmakers advanced a measure expanding the constitutional definition of betting to explicitly cover proposition wagers. Backers argue props create integrity and consumer risks and blur regulatory categories. The bill would bar major sportsbook apps that facilitate those markets. Read more in Utah lawmakers advance bill to ban prop bets.
Massachusetts is weighing a sharper turn. A Senate panel advanced the Bettor Health Act, which would prohibit in-play and prop bets, raise the online sports betting tax rate to 51 percent from 20 percent, and restrict advertising during games. The package reflects concern about the speed and frequency of in-game markets and their link to problem gambling, particularly among younger bettors. The measure underscores how states that embraced sports betting are reassessing product design alongside tax policy. Details are in Massachusetts’ lawmakers advance bill banning in-play and prop bets.
These developments converge with rising scrutiny from sports bodies and regulators over player-focused wagers and micro-bets. Even where outright bans are not on the table, states are pressing operators to pare back offerings or adopt tighter restrictions. For Louisiana, the national shift strengthens the case for robust enforcement against illegal operators marketing high-risk products without regulatory guardrails.
Prediction markets enter the spotlight
Adjacent markets are drawing fresh attention too. Iowa lawmakers advanced a bill to license and tax event-based trading platforms, including prediction markets that have argued they fall under federal commodities oversight rather than state gambling law. The proposal would require a steep initial permit fee and layer on taxes to capture revenue from Iowa users, while litigation over jurisdiction continues. The initiative signals that states are preparing frameworks to either integrate or constrain emerging formats as boundaries between finance and wagering blur. See Iowa lawmakers advance bill to tax prediction markets for the contours of that debate.
For Louisiana, the Iowa discussion is instructive: a mix of licensing fees, taxation and clear definitions can deter gray-market activity and direct operators into regulated channels. Where platforms resist or operate offshore, criminal statutes become the backstop. The racketeering upgrade fits that logic by prioritizing tools that reach beyond storefront violations to the financial and organizational core of illicit enterprises.
Why the stakes are rising
The stakes for Louisiana’s market are financial, legal and consumer-focused. Illegal operators divert play from licensed casinos and sportsbooks, erode tax collections and sidestep responsible gambling requirements. They also expose users to payment risks and limited recourse in disputes. The gaming board’s actions against offshore brands, highlighted in the cease-and-desist campaign, emphasize those consumer harms. By escalating penalties and situating gambling crimes within racketeering, the state aims to increase the cost of doing business for offshore sites and associated facilitators, from payment processors to local promoters.
Operators and affiliates that continue to serve Louisiana without a license face sharper consequences if prosecutors can tie their activity to a racketeering enterprise. The prospect of extended prison terms and significant fines can also influence cooperation deals and data-sharing with regulators. For licensed operators, a cleaner competitive field and stronger consumer trust are tangible benefits. For policymakers, the move complements administrative enforcement and may set a precedent for other jurisdictions balancing market growth with integrity protections.
What to watch next
The measure’s next step is the governor’s desk, where recent history looms. The sweepstakes ban veto showed the administration’s preference for precise, enforceable statutes embedded within existing authority. The racketeering expansion, built into a familiar legal framework and aligned with the gaming board’s enforcement posture, addresses those concerns while signaling resolve against offshore and sweepstakes operators.
Beyond the signature, the test will be execution: coordinated investigations, data-sharing among regulators and law enforcement, and continued civil actions to disrupt payment flows and marketing. Developments in other states — from Utah’s and Massachusetts’ tightening around bet types to Iowa’s attempt to corral prediction markets — will feed into how Louisiana calibrates rules, targets, and resources. Combined, these shifts point to a more interventionist phase in U.S. gambling policy, where product design, tax rates and criminal enforcement move in tandem to shape where and how people bet.
