Colorado Legislature Sends Sports Betting Protections Bill to Governor

• The Colorado Senate today concurred with House changes to a sports betting protections bill
• The bill is now being sent to Gov. Jared Polis (D) for his potential signature
• The bill will increase certain protections in the Colorado sports betting market

A comprehensive Colorado sports betting protections bill has made its way through the state legislature and is now being sent to the desk of Gov. Jared Polis (D).

The Colorado Senate today concurred with a small House amendment for Sen. Matt Ball’s (D-31) bill, SB 26-131, by a 28-7 vote. The final version of the bill was then passed by the Senate by a 20-15 margin.

The state legislature approved the bill prior to the conclusion of its session, which ends tonight.

Increased Sports Betting Protections

The Colorado Senate had to approved a small amendment to the bill to send it to Gov. Polis’s desk. The House voted on the bill over the weekend, approving the document by a 50-13 margin.

If Gov. Polis signs the bill into law, the legislation will prohibit the use of credit cards for sports gambling accounts and will limit sports betting users from depositing funds more than six times in a 24-hour period.

Additionally, the legislation will prohibit mobile phone push notifications and text messages soliciting bets. The legislation also allows the Colorado Gaming Control Commission to to assess a maximum penalty of $25,000 against a violator of a prohibition.

However, several prohibitions and restrictions were taken out of the original legislation after receiving criticism for being too detrimental to the state’s sports betting market. Originally, the bill prohibited all prop bets in the state. Question arose regarding the prohibition, with several legislators sharing concerns over reduced tax revenue if props were completely eliminated from the state. A fiscal estimate showed a complete prohibition of prop bets in Colorado would have reduced sports betting tax revenues by $2.4 million in 2026-27, $2.6 million in 2027-28, and $2.7 million in 2028-29.

The bill was amended to remove the controversial measure in the Senate Finance Committee. Without the prop prohibition, revenue decreases are only estimate to be about $800,000 in 2026-2027.

The final version of the bill also did not include a prohibition on sports betting advertisements during peak television viewing hours. The bill originally prohibited sports betting gambling advertisements in the state from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., or during the broadcast of a live sports event.

Applause From Responsible Gaming Groups

The Campaign for Fairer Gambling, a group that testified in favor of Ball’s bill, today lauded its approval and urged Gov. Polis to sign it into law.

“We applaud the Senate and the leadership of bill sponsors Sens. Matt Ball and Byron Pelton and Reps. Dan Woog and Steven Woodrow for championing this precedent-setting legislation. It is heartening to see the Colorado legislature prioritize the well being of its constituents with these revolutionary consumer protections. We strongly urge Gov. Jared Polis to sign this bill, which will establish Colorado as a national leader in sports betting protections,” Brianne Doura-Schawohl told Sports Betting Dime on behalf of the campaign.