Online Casino Gaming Bill Doomed In Arkansas, Senator Says

A key legislator in Arkansas says it appears unlikely that lawmakers will approve a measure this year to legalize online casino gambling.

On Tuesday, March 25, state Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, told Gambling.com in a text message that there is “no chance” the online casino gaming measure, House Bill 1861, will win legislative support. Hester is the Senate president pro tempore and a member of several committees in the upper chamber, including the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee.

In the text message, Hester said the bill to approve online casino gaming, known as iGaming, will be “vigorously” opposed by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Attorney General Tim Griffin. That makes the bill’s passage “impossible” at the Legislature, Hester said. He added that it would be difficult to secure enough legislative votes to pass it out of both chambers. The legislative session is set to end on April 11.

Online casino gaming allows bettors to play traditional casino games like slots and craps on cellphones and computers for real money. It is legal in eight states but not in Arkansas or any state bordering Arkansas. However, online sports betting is legal in Arkansas. The state’s three brick-and-mortar casinos offer sports betting apps under their own brands, available statewide.

The three licensed Arkansas casinos are Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff, Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort in Hot Springs, and Southland Casino Hotel in West Memphis. Oaklawn also has an app available for bettors wanting to wager on horse races.   

Unregulated Online Gaming ‘Rampant’

Carlton Saffa, Saracen’s chief market officer, has spearheaded the effort to legalize iGaming in Arkansas while also banning unregulated, untaxed sweepstakes casinos.

"Unregulated online gaming is rampant across the U.S. and Arkansas," Saffa previously told Gambling.com. "Most are offshore, and many directly linked to China."

Saffa said the number of online games in Arkansas would decrease under the bill to ban unregulated sweepstakes casinos while limiting online gaming to licensed resorts. 

“We are constricting the number of parties that can participate by regulating it, limiting it, and creating felony provisions for bad actors,” Saffa said.

A companion Senate bill, recently introduced with HB1861, has been withdrawn. Hester said the bill’s sponsor understood it to be about restricting China. The sponsor “was not aware of the iGaming portion,” Hester said.

The Social and Promotional Games Association recently issued a statement opposing iGaming legislation in Arkansas.

“The SPGA urges Arkansas lawmakers to reject this broad, punitive legislation and instead engage with stakeholders to create a balanced, informed policy,” according to the statement.

Use our list of sweepstakes casinos to find legal platforms in your area.