Massachusetts Gaming Commission raises prediction-market concerns
Regulation1 min read
Massachusetts Gaming Commission chair Jordan Maynard told a US House subcommittee that consumers regularly contact the regulator about prediction-market rules and disputes. Maynard said the commission lacks authority over these platforms and argued that their sports contracts may not carry the protections required of regulated sportsbooks.
Massachusetts Gaming Commission chair Jordan Maynard said sports prediction contract operators often lack consumer protections associated with regulated sportsbooks. Maynard raised his concerns in written testimony submitted to a US House subcommittee on 11 November.
Consumers regularly contact the commission about betting rules, disputes and responsible-gambling support, Maynard said. The regulator lacks authority to provide those services for prediction market platforms.
Massachusetts has rules restricting gambling by people under 21, governing advertising and protecting student-athletes. It has banned proposition bets on individual college athletes, but prediction market platforms do not have to follow the same requirements.
Prediction market operators argue that federal commodities law covers their products and that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) oversees them. State authorities argue that contracts on sporting outcomes are sports bets subject to state gambling laws.
In September 2025, the Massachusetts attorney general sued to stop Kalshi offering sports event contracts that allegedly violated state sports wagering law. A state court issued an injunction, but an appeals court suspended the restriction while Kalshi appeals. Kalshi's sports contracts remain available in Massachusetts.
The CFTC lacked the staff and resources to assist consumers across the USA, Maynard argued. The Massachusetts regulator has received no confirmation of concrete results from consumer complaints it sent to the CFTC.