Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Committee adopts amendment, advances bill defining esports and distancing it from casino wagering
Summary
House Bill 1349, the nation's first bill to define paid esports tournaments in state law, passed the Senate Insurance & Commerce Committee as amended after testimony from educators, students and industry groups; the committee removed explicit language authorizing casinos to accept wagers on esports outcomes.
The Senate Insurance & Commerce Committee advanced House Bill 1349 after adopting an amendment that removed language appearing to authorize casinos to accept wagers on esports tournament outcomes. Sponsor Senator Dodson said the bill's primary purpose is to define paid esports tournaments as games of skill and to make clear they do not constitute gambling under Arkansas law.
Senator Dodson framed esports as a growing extracurricular and collegiate activity, saying more than 80 Arkansas schools now offer esports and that six Arkansas colleges award esports scholarships. Logan…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
