California Assembly approves DFS bill; Hawaii AG says DFS is illegal gambling

The California state Assembly has overwhelmingly approved a daily fantasy sports bill, but the measure has an uncertain road ahead.

On Wednesday, the Assembly approved AB 1437 by a margin of 62-1, with Assemblyman Marc Levine casting the lone ‘no’ vote. Levine’s vociferous opposition to DFS has earned him the ire of the DFS lobby, but he went down swinging all the same.

The consumer protection-focused AB 1437 now heads to the state Senate, where it will likely be subjected to closer scrutiny and more than a few amendments. Assuming it garners a favorable vote, the bill would head back to the Assembly for another vote before heading to Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk for signing into law.

The bill makes no judgment on DFS’ legality and state Attorney General Kamala Harris has yet to weigh in with her opinion on that score. The state’s all-powerful tribal gaming industry has also been unusually quiet on whether it views DFS as an encroachment on its traditional control over gambling in California.