[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6266813,"mediaKeyId","3085499-dd24da09dd7a82d7194926df9130aa89","parentId",3085499,"title","Committee backs bill to ban unregulated online sweepstakes casinos, sponsor says it will protect consumers","audioSeconds",554,"startMs",1072000,"endMs",1626000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3085499-dd24da09dd7a82d7194926df9130aa89&start=1072&end=1626","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3085499-dd24da09dd7a82d7194926df9130aa89/thumbnail_1072000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6266813/Louisiana/Committee-backs-bill-to-ban-unregulated-online-sweepstakes-casinos-sponsor-says-it-will-protect-consumers","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6266813-8fe796cea0595754a49bd4a27ae3bb58/orig.mp4?Expires=1771170593&Signature=U6hd2xhT2J-C~nlPR5toXpS81XywuQU-pFzZuj6G7raGKQCyA69GMwuX1BbHTNp98pTA-8SeKNNRnVRg1bdML-BAsRx59xxV2FuLDsvl6s3hdLZuod5YSQsTiGflBBWP-noVTWG-uUyoSpG9USQ5oEmbao5mSXDr8cAz1av7GI1t5zIJvZl-OK76DThFrFBxKHqxWkjFw0RShfG9XkHH6UTUYTtzQmbvyJRLkaD21hzHh4Mu7HfL0BSFpk6DA2f3cPi9G0Uc9cOJ961TQEb8uIWvfqhYNrukUnV6lUjwQxpf1fX9hBqKAA03gPxLweTxFZAKrLr0ImTZH34zfhFodA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Louisiana Legislature","date","2025-04-22T00:00:00Z","article","The Senate Committee on Judiciary B on Tuesday reported Senate Bill 181 as amended after testimony from the bill sponsor, state gaming regulators, law enforcement and casino industry representatives.

Senator Jeremy Bass said SB181 grew from joint work on iGaming and aims to stop illegal online sweepstakes casinos that the sponsor said take an estimated $4.5 billion in wagers from Louisiana residents each year. \"These online casinos...evade consumer protections, responsible gaming and anti-money-laundering requirements to which gambling in Louisiana would otherwise be subject,\" Bass told the committee, and he said the bill narrowly defines sweepstakes casinos to avoid affecting legitimate commercial promotions.

Don Veil, director of the gaming division at the attorney general's office, and Major Adam Albright of the Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division appeared in support and described coordination among regulators and enforcement agencies. Industry witnesses including Wade Doody of the Louisiana Casino Association and Howard Glaser of Light & Wonder told the committee the measure has broad support from the regulated casino industry and responsible-gaming advocates.

Howard Glaser said a web search produced dozens of sites accessible in Louisiana, including operators that lack age verification and consumer protections. \"These online casinos...are using Louisiana residents really as an ATM to pull money out of the state for untaxed, unlicensed gambling,\" Glaser said.

The committee adopted a technical amendment (Amendment set 696) to correct wording in the bill and then, by unanimous consent, reported SB181 as amended; Senator McMath moved favorable reporting. The committee record lists additional supporters read into the record, including the Louisiana Casino Association and several gaming vendors; no opposition speakers were recorded in committee testimony.

Sponsor Bass said the bill does not target legitimate, widely used promotional sweepstakes such as McDonald's Monopoly or Marriott rewards. He also cited other states' recent actions, including cease-and-desist orders and criminal prosecutions against some operators, as evidence the approach is effective.

SB181 will proceed to the full Senate with the committee's amendments; the transcript records the committee's adoption of a technical amendment and favorable report but does not include a roll-call vote.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Louisiana Senate Judiciary B 4/22/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Senate Bill 181, sponsored by Senator Bass, was reported favorably as amended by the Senate Committee on Judiciary B. The bill would classify real-money sweepstakes casinos as illegal gambling, authorize enforcement actions and penalties, and was supported by brick-and-mortar casinos, game vendors and law enforcement.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature LA, Louisiana","taxId",78558,"location","Louisiana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6266818,"Senate committee advances bill making informant interview optional in wiretap orders",948,82000,1030000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3085499-dd24da09dd7a82d7194926df9130aa89&start=82&end=1030","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3085499-dd24da09dd7a82d7194926df9130aa89/thumbnail_82000.jpg","/articles/6266818/Louisiana/Senate-committee-advances-bill-making-informant-interview-optional-in-wiretap-orders","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6266818-fcb755bde3bc3d39044bbcc78e4db17c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771170593&Signature=Ln4dGH8GrlgZKy-y-E6oCxEKYcBF0hlG3NB-yHSJBuGOf25o78JAmfGLTlXvRdmc2PJqS7bk6h3IRTl-MSZrNf8wfJLkbbAElV~JX3QMPYMku53cM3Iz1pTV7iK9jsp3ho3Yp0AzaXnPkTsM07IM2ejt1mRQb-1EPJ-9Z0AhTbZwuYgnkAzCji2jXuajDhYzdf7wUXNLNMSBKSGgTU0KUBMrM0jx1rysxuDCCDahiBuVeR6k7LLtnQKYWSCKzam6piyzgkUIJjmbuXyjexJKddNDK9mAP6nfkZ15rxezYVMkuYq1Q8LmE7I8qj7-RUn0qc~KZIvakSbcSRxz54AMRg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Senate Committee on Judiciary B reported Senate Bill 53 favorably after testimony from the bill's sponsor and law enforcement and objections from criminal defense advocates.

Senator Jeremy Bass sponsored SB53, which would revise parts of Louisiana's Electronic Surveillance Act to define a \"monitoring post\" as a secure Department of Public Safety and Corrections facility (including Louisiana State Police facilities) with investigative control over an interception, require orders authorizing interception to specify the monitoring post's location, and change a statutory requirement that judges must require informants to appear and be sworn from \"shall\" to \"may.\"

The bill's sponsor, Senator Bass, said the change is intended to account for modern communications technology and logistical challenges in rural areas. \"The way the current bill reads, it's really very little that we're trying to see changed,\" Bass told the committee, adding that small or rural parishes sometimes lack internet or suitable facilities and that allowing monitoring from a staffed state facility can reduce risks to officers.

Two Louisiana State Police lieutenants, Glenn Younger and Heath Miller, joined Bass and answered technical questions about current practice and the monitoring-post definition. Younger described the proposed monitoring-post definition as enabling the state police to monitor from facilities they own, lease or operate when local infrastructure is insufficient.

Opposition testimony came from Lisonbee Adger of the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, who argued the bill would \"remove important privacy safeguards currently in the wiretap statute,\" stressing that the present law requires a judge to make an independent credibility determination of informants used to support wiretap applications. \"This bill is a significant erosion of privacy rights under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 5 of our own state constitution,\" Adger said, citing the distinction drawn in State v. Nessler that wiretap orders be treated more restrictively than ordinary search warrants.

Committee member Senator Jay DuPlessis said he was not opposing the bill in committee but voiced concern that changing \"shall\" to \"may\" would lower the statutory standard and shift credibility determinations away from an independent magistrate. Senator DuPlessis said he wanted language that would give him \"a greater sense of comfort\" before voting on the Senate floor.

Senator Talbot moved to report SB53 favorably; the committee voiced no objection and the bill was reported out of committee. The committee record shows supporters included the Louisiana Sheriffs' Association and the Louisiana State Troopers Association; the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers registered opposition and presented the testimony recorded above.

The committee's action was procedural: SB53 was reported favorably to the full Senate without a roll-call vote recorded in the committee transcript.

If enacted, SB53 would leave credibility determinations to judicial discretion while standardizing the monitoring-post definition and requiring the named monitoring location on any interception order. The bill's proponents said the changes would modernize the statute and address operational and safety concerns for investigators; opponents said the changes would weaken preexisting judicial safeguards for extraordinary surveillance orders.","The Senate Committee on Judiciary B on Tuesday reported Senate Bill 53 favorably. The bill redefines \"monitoring post,\" requires warrants to list the monitoring post location, and changes a judge's duty to require informants to appear from mandatory to discretionary, prompting privacy concerns from defense lawyers.","actionData","errors"]

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Committee backs bill to ban unregulated online sweepstakes casinos, sponsor says it will protect consumers

Senate committee advances bill making informant interview optional in wiretap orders