Virginia iGaming Bill Moves Forward After Player Safety Discussions

Lawmakers in Virginia have pushed ahead with Senate Bill 118 (SB118), which aims to legalize online casino gaming. The advance of the project legislation comes after changes were made to ensure better consumer safeguards and problem gambling protections.

Senate Bill 118 Moves Forward

This isn’t the first time a law for iGaming has been proposed in Virginia. Earlier this month, for example, lawmakers made another attempt to legalize online casinos, with a central motivation for that attempt being that iGaming could be a significant source of tax income for Virginia.

While that attempt failed due to security and consumer protection concerns, the latest SB118 seems to be faring much better. The Senate General Laws and Technology Committee approved the revised measures earlier this week and forwarded the bill to the Finance and Appropriations Committee for further consideration. 

The Virginia Lottery Board will have to develop and enforce comprehensive regulations addressing problem gambling. These rules would encompass prevention strategies, early detection, and intervention measures designed to curb compulsive gambling behavior.

Under the proposal, operators would be obligated to educate players about game mechanics and odds, as well as finance responsible gambling initiatives aimed at increasing public awareness of gambling-related risks.

Additionally, the bill mandates that iGaming operators should offer statewide self-exclusion programs, cooling-off periods, and player-defined limits on deposits and gameplay. Platforms must also display regular pop-up notifications indicating the amount of time spent gambling and provide detailed account statements outlining deposits, withdrawals, and net wins or losses.

What Else Helped SB118 Go to the Next Stage of Discussions?

A part of the reason the bill made it to the next stage this time is the fact that legislators voted for much stricter rules on gambling advertisements. Advertising would be required to exclude minors and vulnerable populations from its targeting and clearly feature problem gambling support resources, including helpline details. In addition, platforms would be barred from sending gambling-related communications to players while they are subject to extended, self-imposed suspension periods.

SB118 further enhances enforcement authority over unlicensed operators and sweepstakes-style gaming products. It introduces civil penalties for unlawful offerings, along with criminal sanctions targeting unlicensed online gaming activities and the manipulation of gaming equipment. 

Alongside the broader iGaming discussion, the House has advanced a more targeted gambling reform, House Bill 515 (HB515), focused on payment methods in sports wagering. This has likely also had a significant influence on the passing of SB118.

HB515 would ban the use of credit cards to fund sports betting accounts in Virginia. The proposal was introduced on January 14 and passed the House on its third reading on January 28.

Overall, Virginia lawmakers have been quite busy with gambling-related discussions so far this year. Another important bill that’s continuing forward in its development is House Bill 145, which passed its first test today. It aims to update Virginia’s Fantasy Contests Act by changing how taxation and oversight of the state’s fantasy sports scene work.