California's Anti-Sweeps Bill, AB831, Advances to Final Stage

Despite the recent opposition from local tribes, California's anti-sweepstakes casino legislation, AB 831, has advanced to its final phase. 

On Friday, Aug. 29, the Senate Appropriations Committee held a suspense hearing and voted to remove it from the file and advance it to the Senate.

The vote was a unanimous 7-0. 

Where It Goes From Here

With AB 831 advancing through the Senate Appropriations Committee, what's next? 

Well, it's headed to the Senate for a full vote, where it'll need at least 21 of 40 votes. 

However, there's one caveat. 

Since the bill has changed so much since it was originally introduced, it needs to go through the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee and then the full Assembly once again if it makes it out of the Senate.

In the Assembly, it'll require at least 41 of 80 votes to advance. 

If it makes it through all of that — the Senate, Assembly Governmental Organization Committee, and Assembly — it'll head to Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk for a signature, which will officially ban sweepstakes casinos.  

Something else to consider is that the current legislative session deadline for 2025 is Sept. 12, so starting now, all of that would need to be done in about two weeks. 

So, what happens if they miss that deadline? 

California has a two-year legislative cycle, so instead of the bill failing, it'll be pushed to the start of the new session in January 2026.

Thus, if this doesn't reach Newsom's desk by Sept. 12, the bill stays on the books and is revisited in January 2026. 

AB 831 was placed in the suspense file due to its possible fiscal impact. The bill wasn't voted on right away earlier in August, but rather a bit later, which was on Friday, Aug. 29. 

Local Tribes and Operators Partnering Up

During the discourse surrounding AB 831, local tribes such as Big Lagoon Rancheria, the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians, and the Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation have come out against the bill, citing potential economic harms to their tribes and more. 

Since sending letters to the Senate Appropriations Committee, tribes like the Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians and the Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation have partnered with operators. 

Sherwood has partnered with B-Two Operations (McLuck, Hello Millions), and Kletsel has signed on with Virtual Gaming Worlds (Chumba Casino, Global Poker, LuckyLand Slots). 

Another tribe, the Yuhaaviatam of the San Manuel Nation, is a sponsor of the bill. There's an Assemblymember, James Ramos, who's been a lifelong resident of the San Manuel Reservation and is a member of the tribe. 

Ramos can opt to abstain from voting, per legislative rules. 

We'll see what comes of AB 831. It has until Sept. 12 before potentially waiting until January 2026.