Connecticut Wants to Ban Gambling Ads Targeting Students

Connecticut was one of the states that legalized sports betting a few years ago. This became possible thanks to the US Supreme Court that struck down PASPA back in 2018. Not much later, in September and October 2021, Connecticut launched retail and online sports betting respectively. Since the introduction of the activity, the state has become a major sports betting market.

Now, a new proposal seeks to protect students from gambling harm, by banning the promotion of sports betting to students from universities. The proposal, which is gaining traction currently has the support of six co-sponsors. Five of the co-sponsors of House Bill 5232 (HB 5232) are Democrats, while one is Republican.

Ultimately, HB 5232 seeks to restrict universities from engaging with sports betting companies with the intent to promote wagering to students. The bill calls to restrict universities from disclosing student data such as e-mail, telephone or mailing address for the purpose of advertising sports betting services.

Besides contacting students via different digital channels, the new proposal seeks to restrict in-person communications, as well as “any other means for the purpose of including such person to make a transaction.” In other words, HB 5232 seeks to eliminate any options for universities to join forces with sports wagering companies with the intent to advertise or promote their activities to students.

Still, it’s important to mention that universities may ink sponsorship agreements, but the new bill restricts the promotion or advertising to students in particular.

The Bill Seeks to Protect the Students

The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Amy Morrin Bello, a Democrat, calls for the new rules to come into effect as of July 1, 2023. Bello was recently interviewed by CT Insider on the topic and explained that the idea about HB 5232 came after she saw a worrying article that depicted schools profiting from advertising sports wagering services to students.

She said: “After I read the article, I was really shocked to see that schools are profiting off this practice.” Bello was referring to a report released from the New York Times, that featured a few examples where universities profited from promoting of sports wagering to students. The Democrat noted that she wants to ensure that this doesn’t happen in Connecticut, which is why she introduced the proposal. Acknowledging that there are a lot of bills up during this session, Bello said she would be glad to see the proposal gain further traction.