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Prohibits placing, accepting, or helping to place bets on certain non-financial "specified events" such as terrorism, assassination, war, or government actions. It defines key terms, excludes certain insurance and government reinsurance programs from the wager definition, and gives the U.S. Attorney General a civil injunctive remedy to stop violations. The bill also amends several federal criminal, banking, and commodities laws to incorporate the new prohibition, including a bar on registered commodities entities listing or clearing contracts, swaps, or other instruments tied to those specified events. The law includes a severability clause and takes effect 30 days after enactment.
The bill seeks to prevent wagering on sensitive real‑world events and gives federal authorities and financial institutions new tools to deter and punish such wagers while preserving legitimate insurance, but it creates legal ambiguity, market and compliance burdens, and risks limiting useful risk‑re
Policyholders, federal programs, and businesses retain access to legitimate insurance coverage because the bill excludes lawful insurance and many federal insurance programs from being treated as wagers.
Americans benefit from stronger federal enforcement and financial‑monitoring tools—allowing DOJ/prosecutors and banks to deter and pursue prohibited wagering on specified events.
Registered commodity and trading platforms cannot list or clear contracts tied to certain specified events, reducing the risk of speculative markets forming around sensitive real‑world events.
Because “specified event” is not clearly defined, millions of Americans and businesses face legal uncertainty about what betting or contracts are banned.
Banning event‑linked contracts on regulated platforms could materially reduce market liquidity and legitimate hedging tools, harming businesses, investors, and commodity users that rely on those instruments.
Contracts that look like insurance but lack a formal insurable interest under state law could be treated as prohibited wagers, stripping consumers and small businesses of protections and coverage options.
Introduced March 17, 2026 by Christopher Murphy · Last progress March 17, 2026