Lawmakers in Iowa file bill to criminalize proxy betting
Lawmakers in Iowa are introducing a measure aimed at cracking down on sportsbook account sharing and proxy wagering across the state.
The Iowa Department of Public Safety has proposed Senate Study Bill 1097 as a measure aimed at protecting the public from deceptive practices by considering account sharing and proxy betting as illegal gaming. SSB 1097 proposes an amendment to Iowa’s gambling games and sports wagering rules to include definitions of account sharing and proxy betting. Patrons who have violated state rules by meeting the standards of account sharing and proxy betting are in violation of Iowa law and are subject to criminal penalties.
SSB 1097 aims to provide law enforcement with the proper authority to penalize account sharing and proxy betting by providing a clear definition. Iowa’s current gaming rules do not include any mention of account sharing or proxy wagering providing no pathway for law enforcement to charge patrons who have violated the state’s existing rules on gaming.
SSB 1097 defines account sharing as “entering into or participating in an agreement between two or more persons to, either temporarily or permanently, share access to a person’s account with the purpose of concealing a person’s identity.”
The measure considers proxy betting as “any wagering or betting activity, including a request of another to engage in wagering or betting activity, involving two or more persons, where one person places a wager on behalf of another person with the intent to hide or conceal the bettor’s identity.”
SSB 1097 also takes a different approach to handling account sharing and proxy betting by placing the responsibility on customers while other similar measures penalize operators.
It also criminalizes the delivery of “anything of value to place as a wager in a parimutuel pool or other authorized system of wagering after receiving that thing of value, for a fee, outside of a gambling structure.”
Under SSB 1097, patrons who are found to participate in illegal gambling through account sharing and proxy betting are subject to a serious misdemeanor up to a Class C felony based on the amount of money or value of the property that is wagered or spent illegally.
Violators face at least a $430 fine and no more than one year in confinement for serious misdemeanors related to account sharing and proxy betting. In Iowa, a Class C felony is punishable by prison for no more than 10 years and a fine between $1,370 and $13,660.
On Wednesday, the Iowa Senate Judiciary Committee approved SSB 1097 for further consideration. Lawmakers also plan to renumber the measure as Senate File 395.
Not a new concern in Iowa
In 2023, members of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission voiced their desire for state rule changes to prevent account sharing in the wake of a college betting scandal.
That year, athletes from Iowa and Iowa State were criminally charged for wagering on and against their own teams. The 35 athletes implicated in the scandal played football, baseball, basketball, or wrestling at the two institutions. As a result of the charges, which were dropped due to warrant issues, many of the athletes lost all or some NCAA eligibility.
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