TLDR Ohio Sen. Bill DeMora filed SB 430 to regulate prediction markets offering sports contracts under the state’s existing sports betting laws The bill would require prediction market operators to obtain state licenses and pay the same taxes as sportsbooks Federal courts have issued conflicting rulings on whether states can regulate prediction markets like Kalshi The Ohio Casino Control Commission recently moved to fine Kalshi $5 million for taking unlicensed sports bets Several other gambling-related bills are active in Ohio, including one that would ban online sports betting entirely
An Ohio state senator introduced a bill Monday that would force prediction market operators to follow the same rules as licensed sportsbooks if they offer contracts on sporting events in the state.
Sen. Bill DeMora, a Democrat from Columbus, filed Senate Bill 430 as a backup plan. If the U.S. Supreme Court sides with prediction markets in ongoing legal battles, his bill would still give Ohio a way to tax and regulate them.
“If somehow we lose the court cases, and they say, well, they can do this, then they ought to be taxed for it,” DeMora told Gambling Insider.
DeMora serves as the lead Democrat on the Ohio Senate Select Committee on Gaming. He called Kalshi, the largest U.S. prediction market operator, “a sham” and said its sports contracts are no different from sports bets.
“They need to be regulated like everybody else,” he said. “They need to pay the same amount of taxes everybody else is paying.”
Federal Courts Split on Prediction Market Regulation
Ohio is one of several states that have sued Kalshi for allegedly violating state gambling laws. Kalshi and its competitors argue that only the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has authority over their business.
The CFTC itself has filed suits against certain