Colorado’s sports betting regulator is proposing to make its rule around adding patrons to the involuntary exclusion list stronger by including harassers and anyone who acted to affect the outcome of a game.
The Colorado Division of Gaming Thursday morning held a rulemaking workshop for additions to Rule 29, Section 30-2907. No operator representatives spoke at the meeting, and a public comment period remains open. From here, the Division of Gaming will move the proposal onto the Limited Gaming Control Commission’s agenda for approval.
The issue of harassment has risen in importance over the last year as some operators have banned people who harass. The NCAA last month joined the “Bad Actor” program, intended to identify and fight online harassment of athletes and others involved in college games. The program, a collaboration between Signify Group, IC360, and Fanatics Sportsbook, launched in June.
In September, a coalition of professional sports leagues and players’ associations sent a letter to state regulators asking that stricter standards for those who harass or threaten be put into place. Some states, including Louisiana, Ohio, and West Virginia, already have measures in place.
Colorado has 12 online sports betting platforms available across the state and retail sportsbooks in the mountain towns of Black Hawk, Central City, and Cripple Creek.
Here are the proposed changes
Proposed additions to the rule will allow the state to add anyone who does the following to its involuntary exclusion list:
Whether the individual has threatened physical harm to an athlete or immediate family member thereof, sports governing body or employee thereof, a sports team staff member, a sports team coaching staff member or immediate family member thereof, any staff member or patron of a licensed gaming or sports betting establishment, or any staff member of the Division; or,
Whether the individual has been convicted of a crime in which any of the persons listed in subsection (c)(i)(A)(1) are identified as victims; or,
Whether the individual has engaged in sports betting in contravention of section 44-30-1502, C.R.S.
In addition, it proposes to strengthen another section (new language in bold):
Whether the individual has a reputation that would adversely affect public confidence and trust that the gaming industry is free from criminal or corruptive influences; including but not limited to
whether the individual has manipulated or compromised the integrity of gaming activities or sports betting activities.
Chris Krieger, an investigator for the Colorado Division of Gaming, also shared information about a new harassment reporting online tool that is available on the agency’s website under the “sports betting” tab.
“Our goal is to increase reporting from athletes on harassment they have been receiving,” he said. “The biggest battle, we’ve been told from leagues, is people reporting, so we want to make it clear that we can handle an investigation and get the reporting done.”
