Pallone Reacts to NCAA and Professional Sports Leagues’ Lawsuit to Block Sports Betting in New Jersey

LONG BRANCH, NJ—Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) released the following statement regarding a lawsuit filed by the National College Athletics Association (NCAA), Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Football League (NFL) to prevent the State of New Jersey from moving forward with allowing sports betting. Currently, only Nevada, Oregon, Delaware and Montana have some type of exemption from the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, a federal law prohibiting sports betting. Congressman Pallone is the author of the New Jersey Betting and Equal Treatment Act of 2012 (NJ BET Act), H.R. 3081, which amends the current law to exclude the State of New Jersey from the prohibition on professional sports gambling.

Congressman Pallone is also a co-sponsor of fellow New Jersey Congressman, Frank LoBiondo’s bill the Sports Gaming Opportunity Act of 2012, H.R. 3797, which would also take steps to bring sports betting to New Jersey:

“I am outraged by the lawsuit filed today by the NCAA and four professional sports leagues to prevent New Jersey from allowing legal sports betting in our state. The suit is disappointing and points to a naïve and unrealistic notion that prohibiting New Jersey from allowing sports betting will somehow reduce or prevent gambling on professional and college sports.

“It is widely known that sports betting in the Unites States is currently occurring illegally and offshore and is frequently run by major criminal enterprises. Each year this illegal sports betting represents billions of dollars. By engaging in this lawsuit, the NCAA, MLB, NBA, NHL and NFL are in effect condoning and encouraging the continued criminal activity associated with sports gambling, an activity for which state and federal law enforcement officials are forced to dedicate countless man hours and resources to pursue.

“My bill making sports betting legal in New Jersey would not only help to stem the criminal activity associated with sports gambling, it would also pump much needed revenue into to our state by taking the gambling out of the shadows and regulating it. It has become clear that the states need to step in and regulate sports betting.

“I look forward to continuing to work with my colleague, Congressman LoBiondo to push for both of our bills and to fight to allow New Jersey to bring critical revenues back into the state and out of the hands of criminals.”