Rep. Paul Tonko, a Democrat from the Capital Region, has proposed legislation aimed at restricting the advertising of sportsbooks. The bill, which would ban sportsbook advertising on any medium regulated by the Federal Communications Commission, was introduced just days before the Super Bowl, one of the biggest sports betting events of the year.
Tonko stated that the excessive and uncensored promotion of sports betting sites needs to be put in check and that the legislation sends a message to the online sports betting advertisers. He added that the ads pose a dangerous threat to adolescents, young adults, and individuals prone to addiction.
The proposed bill is modeled after legislation that banned tobacco advertising and comes after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized sports betting in 2018. New York’s sports betting market is one of the most lucrative, with the handle from mobile sports betting reaching over $1.7 billion in January, breaking the previous record of over $1.6 billion from the previous year.
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