Montana became the first state to ban sweepstakes gambling on Friday after Governor Greg Gianforte signed SB 555 into law. The law goes into effect on Oct. 1.
Key Insights
- Montana becomes the first state to ban sweepstakes gambling.
- The SPGA criticized Montana’s law over its vague language and potential unintended consequences.
- Other states are having mixed luck attempting to ban unregulated sweepstakes gambling.
Sweepstakes gambling sites allow customers to wager with free coins. The additional coins, however, can also be purchased with real money and/or cryptocurrency and exchanged for cash and prizes. These types of online casinos, which are unlicensed and unregulated, have recently come under fire from lawmakers and regulators.
Montana’s SB 555 cleared both legislative houses in April. While the new law does not specifically call out sweepstakes casinos, it bans online casinos including, but not limited to, “any platform, website, or application that knowingly transmits or receives gambling information, allows consumers to place a bet or wager using any form of currency, and makes payouts of any form of currency.”
The laws also up the penalty for illegal internet gambling operators, stating “the punishment for which is a felony, may upon conviction be fined not more than $50,000 or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, for each violation.”
Some sweepstakes casino operators already abandoned Montana in anticipation of the bill’s passage, including Virtual Gaming Worlds (VGW), the parent company of Chumba Casino and Luckyland Slots.
The SPGA calls Montana’s law 'reckless'
Not everyone is a fan of Montana’s new law. The Social and Promotional Games Association (SPGA) is concerned that the law’s vague language could jeopardize traditional rewards programs offered by hotels, airlines, and tech companies.
“Montana just criminalized everyday digital promotions with a law so broadly written it fails to name what it bans,” said a SPGA spokesperson. “It’s a dangerous precedent that could undermine consumer trust, business innovation, and long-standing legal marketing practices.”
The SPGA raised similar concerns over Louisiana’s bill targeting sweepstakes gambling. Louisiana’s SB 181 passed the Senate late last month.
States have mixed success banning sweeps
While Montana is the first, it probably won’t be the last state to prohibit sweepstakes gambling. But it hasn’t been a slam dunk for those states making the attempt.
Mississippi’s attempt to ban sweeps failed when the state failed to legalize online sports betting. The two initiatives were tied together in the same bill. Likewise, Florida, Arkansas, and Maryland were unable to get their sweeps banning bills across the finish line.
"Montana’s lawmakers have taken a reckless step, ignoring the economic and consumer consequences, and diverging from states like Arkansas, Maryland, Mississippi, and Florida, which have all rejected similar bans in 2025," the SPGA spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, Louisiana, Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York still have active bills targeting sweepstakes gambling.
