Louisiana Votes in Favor of New Bill Making Sweeps Casinos a Major Crime
The Louisiana state Senate voted in favor of House Bill 53, which sought to "add certain gambling crimes as predicate offenses for racketeering activity; and to provide for related matters," according to the bill's language. Since scrutiny on the sweepstakes industry really took off in 2025, this is the most aggressive bill passed against it.
House Bill 53 gets huge win in Louisiana
House Bill 53 made it past the Louisiana Senate with a pretty easy victory. A 29-7 vote was confirmed on Monday. It was then sent back to the House of Representatives on Tuesday without any changes. It still has to go through both chambers of the legislature, and then it will be passed up to Governor Jeff Landry. He can sign the bill and ratify it or veto.
It is highly unlikely that Landry will veto if it makes it to his desk. He and Attorney General Liz Murrill have been outspoken about this issue before. Murrill, in particular, has, as reported previously, made sweeping statements against sweepstakes casinos.
“Some of these platforms, including so-called ‘sweepstakes’ or ‘social casino’ sites, may offer real-money payouts, use dual-currency or coin-based systems, or offer material prizes such as gift cards, all under the false appearance of legality and trying to compare themselves with legitimate sweepstakes, like that of McDonald’s or Starbucks," she said.
Many in the state have argued that using Sweeps Coins is online gambling. If the court holds the same view, then sweepstakes casinos would be considered gambling with a computer, and that's a key designation because it would raise certain gambling-related offenses into Louisiana's racketeering crime framework, which carries significantly harsher criminal penalties.
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It's not over yet
House Bill 53 isn't the only one. House Bill 883 is also on the table, and it would change things for the first bill. It would, if passed, outlaw dual-currency gaming. That would target, like HB53, the sweeps casinos because there are multiple forms of currency.
"Any game, contest, or promotion that is available on the internet or accessible on a mobile phone, computer terminal, or similar access device that utilizes a dual-currency system of payment allowing the player to exchange the currency for any prize or award, cash, or cash equivalents, or any chance to win any prize or award, cash, or cash equivalents, and simulates any form of gambling constitutes gambling by computer," the bill's language reads.
That, unfortunately, leaves no wiggle room. "Any form of gambling" is pretty overarching language. With only HB53 passed, there is still some room for interpretation, meaning a separate court case could save the Louisiana sweeps casinos from this fate.
However, if both bills are passed, it would redefine the language and upgrade the criminal charges. This would put the entire thing in a very dark situation. For now, Louisianans will wait to see if Landry signs HB53. Then, they'll have to wait and see if HB883 is passed by the Senate and makes its way to his desk to be signed as well. That will all happen in the coming weeks.
