In March 2025, two bills (HB1861 and SB524) appeared in the Arkansas General Assembly. The bills were based on a proposed Interactive Gaming Act that would have legalized real money online casinos, but only through the state’s three licensed land-based operators. Sweepstakes casinos were also included in the proposal.
Rather than setting rules for sweepstakes sites, the language moved in a different direction. Operating a dual currency sweepstakes casino in Arkansas would have been treated as a felony. The focus was not on oversight or licensing, but on clearing the space for a tightly controlled online casino market.
That effort didn’t go anywhere. Both bills got stuck in committee and never even made it to a vote, so the current Arkansas laws on sweepstakes and prize promotions stayed the same. So, sweepstakes casinos (as well as social casinos) are still operating under the same legal understanding that was in place before the bills were introduced.
But that pause isn’t the same as a resolution. A lot of the pressure to restrict sweepstakes casinos comes from licensed casino operators. They’ve argued that unregulated platforms pull revenue away from the state and operate outside formal oversight. Because of that, similar proposals are expected to return, either through changes to Ark. It’s either Code § 5-66-101 or a new attempt at online gaming legislation.
For now, the legal ground hasn’t really changed. Sweepstakes casinos are still allowed under current Arkansas law, even though the topic is still being discussed and, who knows, might change in the future.
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