Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on penalties or consequences for violations, leaving some aspects of enforcement unclear.

Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act

The Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act stops online gambling companies from letting people under 18 gamble or see ads for it, and sets rules to protect kids' privacy.

What This Bill Does

• It stops internet websites, apps, and services from making available or advertising online gambling activities or prediction market wagering to minors (people under 18).
• It prohibits the information collected for purposes of compliance from being used for any purpose unrelated to determining whether the user is a minor, and requires the information to be immediately deleted after age determination is complete.
• It allows the Attorney General or city attorneys to sue companies that break these rules and get money as punishment, plus costs for lawyers and court fees.
• It lets minors who were hurt by breaking these rules, or their parents/guardians, to sue for damages and other help from a judge.
• It requires the Attorney General to make new rules about how to check if someone is a minor before July 1, 2027.

Who It Names or Affects

• Online gambling companies that have websites or apps.
• Minors (people under 18) who might want to gamble online.
• Parents and guardians of minors affected by this act.

Terms To Know

Unfair Competition Law

A law that stops businesses from doing things that are not fair or honest, like tricking customers.

Attorney General

The top lawyer for a state who works to enforce laws and protect the public.

Limits and Unknowns

• It does not specify what happens if someone breaks these rules.
• It only applies to online gambling activities, not physical casinos or betting shops.
• The bill text does not specify how much money can be collected as punishment for breaking the law.

Official Summary Text

AB 2617, as amended, Schiavo.
Cannabis.
Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act.
Existing law prohibits a person under 21 years of age from playing, being allowed to play, placing wagers at, or collecting winnings from, a controlled game, as specified. Existing law prohibits lottery tickets from being sold to persons under 18 years of age. Existing law prohibits specified unfair acts or practices undertaken or committed by any person in the operation of any contest or sweepstakes, including, among other things, using or offering for use any method, including an internet website or an online application, intended to be used by a person interacting with an electronic video monitor, mobile telephone, computer terminal, or similar internet access device, to simulate gambling.
This bill, the Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act, would
prohibit operators of internet websites, online services, online applications, or mobile applications from making available, or advertising, online gambling activities or prediction market wagering to minors, as specified. The bill would prohibit the information collected for purposes of compliance from being used for any purpose unrelated to determining whether the user is a minor, and would require the information to be immediately deleted after age determination is complete, except as specified. The bill would authorize the Attorney General or a city attorney to bring a civil action for a violation of these provisions to obtain specified civil penalties, attorney’s fees and costs, and injunctive or declaratory relief. The bill would authorize a minor who suffers actual harm due to a violation of these provisions, or a parent or guardian acting on behalf of that minor, to bring a civil action to obtain specified statutory damages and other relief the court deems proper. The bill would require the Attorney
General to adopt regulations to implement these provisions, including regulations governing age assurance standards, on or before July 1, 2027.
Existing law, the Unfair Competition Law, makes various practices unlawful and makes a person who engages, has engaged, or proposes to engage in unfair competition liable for a civil penalty, as specified. Existing law authorizes actions for relief prosecuted under the Unfair Competition Law to be brought by certain public attorneys and requires the penalty collected from those actions to be paid to the treasurer of the county or city in which the judgment is entered, as specified.
This bill would specify that a violation of the Protecting Kids from Online Gambling Act
constitutes unfair competition for purposes of the Unfair Competition Law.
This bill would specify that its provisions are severable.
The Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act generally regulates the manufacture and sale of cannabis products in the state. The act specifies that the purpose and intent of the act is to establish a comprehensive system to control and regulate the cultivation, distribution, transport, storage, manufacturing, processing, and sale of medicinal cannabis and medicinal cannabis products for patients with valid physician’s recommendations, and adult-use cannabis and adult-use cannabis products for adults 21 years of age and over and cannabis products intended for use on, or consumption by, animals.
This bill would make nonsubstantive
changes to the provision describing the purpose and intent of that act.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF