A new bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate takes aim at prediction‑market platforms that lawmakers say are offering sports betting under another name.
On March 23, Sens. Adam Schiff (D‑Calif.) and John Curtis (R‑Utah) introduced the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, which would bar Commodity Futures Trading Commission registered entities from listing any contract that resembles a sports wager or casino‑style game. The bill would amend the Commodity Exchange Act, blocking registered markets from offering contracts tied to sporting events or casino games.
Schiff said the CFTC has allowed sports prediction markets to expand nationwide despite state and federal gambling laws. “Sports prediction contracts are sports bets — just with a different name,” Schiff said in a statement.
Curtis said the bill would protect states that prohibit gambling and limit products he described as addictive and improperly regulated.
“Too many young people in Utah are getting exposed to addictive sports betting and casino‑style gaming contracts that belong under state control, not under federal regulators,” Curtis said in a statement.
The legislation comes as prediction‑market platforms face growing scrutiny from tribes, states and federal officials. Tribes have warned that the platforms function as unlicensed sports betting and threaten the regulatory framework that governs tribal gaming.
That concern has already moved into the courts. Three California tribes — Blue Lake Rancheria, Chicken Ranch Rancheria of Me‑Wuk Indians and Picayune Rancheria of Chukchansi Indians — sued Kalshi and Robinhood in federal court last year, alleging the companies are conducting illegal sports gambling on tribal lands. The tribes argue Kalshi’s sports contracts qualify as Class III gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and violate their exclusive authority to regulate gaming on reservation lands.
“While masquerading as novel commodities and futures products, these event contracts are, substantively, nothing more than illegal, unregulated wagers on the outcomes of sporting events,” the complaint states.
The lawsuit adds to tribal actions already underway. Sixteen tribes and the Indian Gaming Association previously backed Connecticut regulators who ordered Kalshi, Robinhood and Crypto.com to halt unlicensed online gambling, as previously reported by Tribal Business News. Tribes argue the platforms are an “existential threat” to gaming exclusivity as they bypass age verification, licensing and consumer protections required of tribal and state systems.
Prediction markets have grown rapidly, with Super Bowl trading volume surpassing $1 billion in 2026. Platforms advertise nationwide access, even in states that prohibit sports betting. The Schiff‑Curtis bill would close that gap by clarifying that the Commodity Exchange Act does not permit sports gambling and by reinforcing state and tribal authority over gaming.
About The Author
Staff Writer
Chez Oxendine (Lumbee-Cheraw) is a staff writer for Tribal Business News. Based in Oklahoma, he focuses on broadband, Indigenous entrepreneurs, and federal policy. His journalism has been featured in Native News Online, Fort Gibson Times, Muskogee Phoenix, Baconian Magazine, and Oklahoma Magazine, among others.
Other Articles by this author