New Jersey Legislators Seeking to Ban Micro Bets

• A New Jersey Senator has introduced legislation to ban micro bets
• If approved, operators who violate the prohibition will be fined between $500 to $1,000 per offense
• Micro bets are defined as a prop bet which is wagered live that concerns the outcome of the next play or action

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New Jersey legislators will consider a potential ban on micro betting in the Garden State.

Senator Paul D. Moriarty (D-4) recently introduced bill S4794, which will prohibit licensed New Jersey sports betting operators to offer or accept micro bets in the state.

According to the proposed legislation, micro bets are defined as prop bets which are wagered live during a sport or athletic event and concerns the outcome of the next play or action occurring in the event.

Micro Bets “Easier to Fix”

Moriarty’s introduced his bill on Monday, Oct. 27, just three days after new broke of an NBA sports betting and poker scandal that saw several current and former members of the NBA manipulating player prop outcomes and sharing insider information with an illegal sports betting ring.

Moriarty notes in the legislation that micro bets are easier to fix than many traditional forms of wagering, which make them “especially enticing to athletes who are already struggling with problem gambling.”

“There have been several reported cases of professional athletes being investigated for altering their performance to meet the terms of wagers on a micro bet,” Moriarty wrote.

His bill currently sits in the Senate state government, wagering, tourism and historic preservation committee.

The legislation sets potential fines for operators that accept, or even offer, micro bets on their platforms. Operators will are found to be offering or accepting micro bets will be found guilty of a disorderly persons offense and shall be fined between $500 and $1,000 per offense. Each micro bet offered or accepted will constitute a separate offense.

“The pace at which sporting events are played, and therefore the pace at which micro bets can be placed, limits the ability of bettors to research and consider their wagers before placing them and enable bettors to play a higher volume of wagers in a shorter amount of time, contributing to excessive and irresponsible gambling,” Moriarty wrote.

States Examining Betting Markets After Scandals

Several state gaming regulators and individual politicians are taking it upon themselves to evaluate their sports betting markets in the wake of the recent NBA sports betting scandal.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board yesterday announced it will monitor risks associated with player prop bets to see if its current safeguards are acceptable or if additional changes are necessary.

“Certain types of prop bets present a higher risk of manipulation, particularly when tied to insider knowledge or player behavior,” MGCB Executive Director Henry Williams said. “As regulators, we must assess whether current safeguards are sufficient or if additional restrictions are necessary.”

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has urged the Ohio Casino Control Commission to work with MLB officials to consider a micro betting ban. DeWine proposed banning micro bets as part of a larger proposal to ban all prop bets in Ohio.

Two separate Cleveland Guardians pitchers were placed on non-disciplinary paid leave as part of an MLB sports betting investigation this past season. The Guardians first placed starting pitcher Luis Ortiz on non-disciplinary paid leave on July 3, followed by all-star closer Emmanuel Clase being placed on non-disciplinary paid leave on July 28.

The Ohio governor pointed to micro prop-bets on highly controllable moments within a game that can be influenced by a single athlete as particularly troublesome.

“The evidence that prop betting is harming athletics in Ohio is reaching critical mass. First, there were threats on Ohio athletes, and now two high-profile Ohio professional athletes have been suspended by Major League Baseball as part of a ‘sports betting investigation,’” DeWine said. “The harm to athletes and the integrity of the game is clear, and the benefits are not worth the harm. The prop betting experiment in this country has failed badly. I call on the Casino Control Commission to correct this problem and remove all prop bets from the Ohio marketplace.”