Fantasy sports bill once again filed in Florida

Florida is taking a second shot at passing a bill to exempt fantasy sport in the Sunshine State after a similar measure met its demise in a late legislative session meltdown last year.

Tallahassee Democrat reported that State Rep. Jason Brodeur, a Sanford Republican, filed a measure on Wednesday seeking to clarify that fantasy sports games are not considered gambling under Florida laws.

Brodeur’s HB 149 aims to exempt “fantasy contests” from regulation by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which oversees gambling in the state. The measure, which specifically includes games based on “athletes in the case of sports events,” comes amid questions on whether fantasy-sports contests are a form of gambling.

“The question was never answered,” he said. “The millions of Floridians who play fantasy games deserve to know that what they’re doing is not a crime.”