Louisiana Passes HB 883 to Ban Sweepstakes, Awaits Governor Landry’s Signature
After House Bill 53 passed in April, House Bill 883 (HB 883) unanimously came next by the Louisiana Senate on a 35-0 vote to ban sweepstakes casinos in the state. The bill now goes to Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry for his approval or veto, and you can’t rule out anything after he vetoed a similar bill last year. Not to mention, we just saw Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt throw down a surprising veto the same week on a sweeps ban in his state.
One of the big influences to eliminate sweepstakes games is that legal online sports betting is available in most parts of New Orleans. Betting is governed by the Louisiana Gaming Control Board (LGCB) and can be played in 55 of the 64 parishes at both online and retail locations. In the state of Louisiana, there’s no need to compete with a business that isn’t bringing any money into the state.
It’s an intriguing time for sweepstakes casinos as they go through what seems like a state-by-state gauntlet. Some states are willing to have sweeps platforms aboard, while others see them as a direct threat to highly coveted state tax revenue. In fact, Louisiana’s tax revenue has increased each year incrementally, with over $250 million coming into the state since 2022.
From a Veto in 2025 to Trying Again in 2026
There’s a tense history behind HB 883 as it heads towards the finish line. Last year, Gov. Landry vetoed Senate Bill 181 (SB 181) at this same stage of the process, and some are wondering if he’ll do the same this time around. The bill passed both chambers unanimously, and there’s reason to believe this year will be different.
Landry’s argument in 2025 claimed that existing laws prohibited sweepstakes games, and the LGCB was already on the case. Cease-and-desist letters were sent to offshore sportsbooks, and any action against the sweepstakes platforms could have language that risked its case against the offshores.
In July 2025, Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a legal opinion stating that sweepstakes casinos were illegal in Louisiana for several reasons. Her opinion emphasized that sweepstakes games were akin to gambling, regardless of how the operators promoted them. Not long after those cease-and-desist letters were sent to over 40 operators, they either left Louisiana altogether or offered a restricted version of their games.
This would set the tone for 2026, as Louisiana lawmakers took double-barreled action on the two bills, with one of them including penalties that could result in thousands of dollars in fines and/or up to five years in prison.
Details on Louisiana’s HB 53 & HB 883
The cease-and-desist letters only offered temporary penalties, and some operators continued regardless, while others simply rebranded. At this point, Louisiana prosecutors didn’t have much to work with, but that’s where the new bills came into play to make sure sweeps casinos went through pain in the Pelican State.
Each bill has a specific purpose and was pre-filed within a month of one another. HB 883 is what amends the definition of illegal “gambling by computer” to include online games and promotions that use a dual-currency platform (Gold Coins & Sweeps Coins) that can be exchanged or combined to access redeemable prizes (money, gift cards, etc.) while simulating casino- or -sportsbook-style gambling.
HB 53 (January 2026) was pre-filed a month earlier than HB 883 (February 2026), but it’s this bill that brings the hammer. The violations listed above would be turned into racketeering cases by the bill, and it comes with organized-crime-level penalties. Essentially, it turns a basic gambling offense into fines going anywhere from $20,000 to $100,000 and even prison sentences up to five years. Good luck with that.
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Reasons U.S. States are Cracking Down on Sweepstakes Casinos
Sweepstakes casinos have been a platform to sidestep the traditional licensed (legal) method. The sweeps operators do not pay any tax on revenue, so that’s mainly where the gripes come from.
In 2022, the first full year of online sports betting, Louisiana gained $34.2 million in tax revenue, followed by $43.5 million in 2023, $66 million in in 2024, and $92.3 million in 2025. For the first three months of 2026, the Bayou State has amassed $25.3 million in tax revenue, putting it on track to make $101.2 million this year.
Simply put, Louisiana is not trying to give that up or have anyone else cut into it.
A sizeable portion of these states bringing bills to ban sweeps either already have licensed online sports betting or are in the process making it legal; some states just don’t feel like the sweeps platform has enough consumer protections. Just this year, the governors in Indiana and Maine both signed bills to ban sweepstakes casinos, while Tennessee has two bills on the governor’s desk with unanimous approval from the House and Senate to do the same.
What is the dual-currency platform?
Sweepstakes games use a dual-currency system, using Gold Coins for fun play and Sweeps Coins to redeem prizes like real money, gift cards, and merchandise.
The packages of Gold Coins are supposed to be for entertainment purposes only, but it is widely known that people are going through the exact motions of gambling and receiving “prizes” in the process.
Louisiana Gambling Landscape
Louisiana has several forms of gambling, including online and retail sports betting in 55 of its 64 parishes, as well as land-based and riverboat casinos, but there is no legal online casino gambling in the state. Occasionally, there have been talks on bills to legalize online casinos, but nothing will be passed in the 2026 session.
The ban on sweepstakes casinos now sets the stage for the next stage of gambling in Louisiana, which has one of the most popular tourist destinations in New Orleans. For as entertaining as the Big Easy is, the lawmakers had actually been very dismissive of gambling in the past.
It wasn’t until the 1990s that riverboat casinos and video poker were allowed in the state, but that ushered in the wave of land-based casinos around the state. In 2022, Louisiana finally launched sports betting under very strict oversight by the LGCB.
Impacts on Sweeps Operators
All of these pushes gave sweepstakes casinos a stronger foothold here in Louisiana, positioning their platforms as promotional sweepstakes rather than traditional gambling.
It’s not hard to see where all of this is going for sweepstakes casinos; they’ll either need to comply with regulations or find another line of business. Many operators have already left Louisiana or scaled back to the extent of “entertainment only,” while even payment processors are risking federal-level crimes.
Now that the word “racketeering” is being applied to the sweepstakes industry, it’s a tough pill to swallow for these operators. It seems they had a good run while it lasted, but federal prison is probably not where these operators thought they would end up when they started their business.
Can Sweepstakes Casinos Exist with iGaming on the National Stage?
If sweepstakes operators are willing to come to the table on regulations, there could be room in the licensed gambling ecosystem for all. However, many sweepstakes platforms in states with licensed online sports betting and iGaming will find it tough to compete alongside the top names in the industry with vast customer bases; it would be like the Toledo Mud Hens playing the New York Yankees. If you don’t know who the Mud Hens are, my point has been made.
Honestly, it’s hard enough for a number of licensed iGaming platforms to compete with the top two names in the industry. The operators sitting in third, fourth, and fifth are well-known, and they are still light-years behind the top two in revenue.
Open competition is alive and well in America, so I would be very interested to see how sweepstakes casinos would perform against the licensed names in the game. After all, we have seen 16-seeds knock off 1-seeds in the NCAA Tournament. I guess anything is possible, but it’s going to be a very tough, uphill battle for sweepstakes casinos going forward.
