Minnesota Daily Fantasy Sports: March 2016 Update

Just a quick update today for daily fantasy sports in Minnesota. We’re hearing the very early rumblings of a possibility for state representatives to propose legislation seeking to formally legalize and regulate daily fantasy sports contests.

Two different local newspapers have reported that the Minnesota legislature is expected to take up the issue when lawmakers convene on March 8th for the new legislative year. It is there that two lawmakers are considering proposing legislation to officially legalize and regulate daily fantasy sports.

First, the Star Tribune has reported that Representative Joe Atkins (DFL – Inver Grove Heights) will propose a bill to bring daily fantasy sports under the legal and regulatory umbrellas of Minnesota law. So far, we have no details to report on as news coverage is still sparse and he has yet to submit an actual bill.

A press release from last year provides a very early look at how the legislation could look when proposed:

  • Establish the legality of daily fantasy sports
  • Establish a framework by which daily fantasy sports providers are issued licenses and security/customer funds are protected. Any fantasy sports site in which customers wager more than $50,000 per year would require a license from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety

Two weeks ago, KSTP Minneapolis reported that Representative Bob Barrett (R – Lindstrom) is also planning to introduce legislation to clarify that daily fantasy sports are indeed legal in Minnesota. We have even fewer details on this proposal, but he clearly favors the idea of legalization.

“They (the federal government) said that daily fantasy and fantasy sports are not a game of chance,” he said. “It’s a legal activity. So mirror that in Minnesota so it’s perfectly clear.”

The Minnesota AG Won’t Be Causing any Problems

The Attorneys General of several states have given fantasy sites major headaches in recent months. Not too long ago, the New York AG not only declared fantasy sports illegal, but also demanded that fantasy sites refund all players everything they have ever paid in entry fees to FanDuel and DraftKings.

Meanwhile, the AGs of Illinois, Texas and Vermont have all issued opinions stating that real money fantasy sports contests violate their states’ gaming laws. This has naturally given fantasy sites all sorts of trouble as they try to remain viable amid an increasingly hostile legal environment.

That same Star Tribune articled linked-to above explains that the Minnesota Attorney General’s office has no jurisdiction over fantasy sports or gambling. That responsibility falls to the Department of Public Safety. Even better, a spokesman for the DPS told the Star Tribune that the DPS “has no reason to investigate fantasy sports betting websites.”

So overall, it looks like mostly good news out of Minnesota so far. None of this is a guarantee, of course, but the little news we do have is fairly positive. Hopefully, Minnesota’s estimated 800,000+ daily fantasy players will remain able to decide for themselves how they spend their money.

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