A Very Different Kind of Gambling Bill
House Bill 53, introduced by Rep. Bryan Fontenot, proposes expanding Louisiana’s racketeering statute to include several gambling-related activities, including electronic sweepstakes gambling, computer-based wagering, and gambling conducted in public spaces.
That might sound technical, but the implication is simple: Sweepstakes casinos would no longer be dealt with through fines, cease-and-desist letters, or licensing disputes. They’d be treated like criminal enterprises. Not regulated. Not tolerated. Prosecuted.
This isn’t a new ban or a clarification bill. It’s a reclassification, and a severe one at that.
Why Racketeering Changes Everything
Racketeering laws aren’t built for rule-breakers. They’re built to dismantle entire operations the state believes are organized, persistent, and harmful. Once something lands in that category, the consequences change fast.
In Louisiana, a racketeering conviction isn’t a fine-and-move-on situation. It can mean fines reaching $1 million and prison sentences of up to 50 years, including hard labor. If prosecutors argue the activity involved more than $10,000, mandatory minimum sentences kick in, with no parole or probation on the table.
And it doesn’t stop with the operators themselves. Racketeering statutes are designed to cast a wide net, pulling in promoters, facilitators, payment partners, and anyone the state believes helped keep the operation running. This isn’t just about who owns the platform, it’s about who touches it as well.
Why Louisiana Is Done Debating Sweepstakes
This bill didn’t appear out of thin air. Louisiana has been circling sweepstakes casinos for a while now.
The state’s Gaming Control Board has already sent cease-and-desist letters to sweepstakes-style operators. Last year, Attorney General Liz Murrill went a step further, issuing a legal opinion that said dual-currency sweepstakes platforms are already illegal under Louisiana law.
Even Governor Jeff Landry’s veto of an earlier sweepstakes ban fits into that story. His message wasn’t about tolerance. It was about authority. Lawmakers didn’t need another law to ban sweepstakes casinos, he argued, because regulators already had the power to shut them down. What they lacked were sharper tools.
House Bill 53 is meant to be that tool. It doesn’t ask whether sweepstakes casinos belong in Louisiana. It assumes they don’t, and raises the consequences to make sure the message lands.
Why Sports Bribery Is in the Same Bill
At first glance, sweepstakes casinos and sports bribery don’t seem like an obvious pair, but lawmakers put them together on purpose.
Louisiana has been watching a growing number of betting scandals in college and professional sports, and this bill treats all of it as part of the same problem: gambling activity happening outside the lines. Whether it’s bribing an athlete or running an unlicensed betting platform, the concern remains that it undermines confidence in the system.
This bill isn’t only about protecting players or consumers. It’s about protecting trust. And by folding sweepstakes gambling into the same framework as sports corruption, Louisiana lawmakers are making it clear they see both as threats to the integrity of the market, not just technical violations.
How Louisiana Compares to Other States
Plenty of states are cracking down on sweepstakes casinos. Louisiana just wants to go further than anyone else.
- New York relies on heavy fines and licensing penalties
- Connecticut treats violations as consumer protection offenses
- New Jersey focuses on fines and disgorgement
- California allows short jail terms and moderate fines
Louisiana is talking about something else entirely: decades in prison.
Only a small number of states classify sweepstakes violations as felonies, and none have gone as far as attaching racketeering charges with penalties this extreme. That’s what makes House Bill 53 stand out.
What This Really Signals
Louisiana isn’t interested in regulating sweepstakes casinos. It’s done debating gray areas.
House Bill 53 draws a hard line and backs it with the state’s heaviest legal weapon. If it advances, sweepstakes operators won’t be treated as regulatory violators. They’ll be treated as criminal enterprises.
That shift matters. It moves the conversation from “Is this allowed?” to “How hard do we shut it down?”
Whether the bill passes or not, Louisiana has already made its position clear. The era of quiet tolerance is over.
Blaise Luis
