Florida to consider latest fantasy sports bill

Lawmakers in Florida are to consider a new bill that would legalise fantasy sports.

According to the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper, HB 149, filed last week by Sanford Representative Jason Brodeur, would exempt “fantasy contests” from regulation by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which regulates gambling in the US state.

The bill would enable consumers to draft rosters of actual athletes, while at the same time exempting fantasy sports from gambling laws, as fantasy contests are ‘games of skill’, rather than gambling.

“The millions of Floridians who play fantasy games deserve to know that what they’re doing is not a crime,” Brodeur said, according to the newspaper.

However, despite the new bill having been put forward, it is yet to gain a Senate companion.

Related article: Florida House, Senate approves daily fantasy sports bills