Two Louisiana bills heading into the 2026 session could trim the state’s betting menu and make it easier to kick abusive bettors out of the market.
Two bills, one clear message
Louisiana lawmakers are preparing to weigh a pair of sports betting measures when the legislative session opens next week, with both proposals aimed at tightening control over the market.
The first, SB 354, would ban most proposition wagers in the state, including live micro bets tied to individual plays during a game. The second, SB 325, would require sportsbooks to shut out bettors who threaten or harass athletes, coaches, referees, or other event participants.
Taken together, the bills show where the conversation is heading. Regulators and lawmakers are paying closer attention to betting integrity, and they are paying even closer attention to what happens when frustrated gamblers turn on the people on the field.
SB 354 takes aim at prop bets and live micro markets
The bigger market mover is SB 354, filed by Sen. Katrina Jackson-Andrews. The bill would add fresh definitions to Louisiana law and then use them to cut off wide swaths of prop-style wagering.
Under the proposal, a prop bet would mean a wager on part of a sporting event that does not involve the final outcome. A sports micro-bet would mean a live prop wager tied to a specific play or action while the game is still underway.
That matters because micro betting has become one of the industry’s flashiest products and one of its touchiest. These bets move fast, they keep people glued to the app, and they also create more openings for integrity concerns. For the average bettor, that could mean fewer novelty options and a simpler betting board if the bill passes.
Why these wagers are getting so much heat
Prop bets and micro wagers have landed in the spotlight after a string of betting scandals across major sports.
The most famous example involved former NBA player Jontay Porter, who received a lifetime ban after manipulating his play in games tied to prop betting activity. In the fallout, sportsbooks pulled player props for athletes on short-term and two-way deals.
Major League Baseball also moved to cool off the micro-bet market after concerns tied to Cleveland Guardians pitchers. The league worked with sportsbooks to cap play-specific micro wagers at $200 and remove them from parlays.
Louisiana’s bill would go much further. Instead of trimming the edges, it would wipe out most of those markets entirely.
SB 325 would give sportsbooks another way to ban bettors
The second proposal, SB 325 from Sen. Mike Reese, focuses less on what people can bet and more on how they behave.
The bill would require regulators to maintain a list of excluded bettors. Louisiana already bars certain people from wagering, including those tied to gambling crimes or conduct that threatens gaming operations. SB 325 would widen that net.
Anyone who threatens violence or harm against a player, coach, referee, or another person involved in a sporting event, when that threat is tied to sports betting, could be added to the exclusion list. The bill also gives regulators room to ban people whose betting activity is seen as a threat to the industry’s integrity or proper regulation.
That is a direct response to a problem that has been getting harder to ignore. As prop betting has spread, so has abuse aimed at athletes, especially college players who are suddenly hearing from angry bettors after every missed shot or blown call.
Harassment rules are becoming a bigger part of the betting debate
Louisiana would not be operating in a vacuum here. Sportsbooks and sports groups across the country are already moving in the same direction.
BetMGM recently said it may ban customers who harass athletes or officials. At the same time, Big Ten athletes have pushed NCAA leadership to curb player prop betting, arguing that those markets fuel abuse.
That makes SB 325 more than a housekeeping bill. It is part of a broader shift in how states and operators are trying to draw a line between fan engagement and outright toxic behavior.
What happens next in Baton Rouge
The Louisiana legislature begins its session Monday and will remain in session through June 1. Both bills are eligible for consideration once lawmakers get to work.
If they pass, Louisiana bettors could see a market with fewer prop options and tougher conduct rules. For casual players, that may sound less exciting on the surface, but lawmakers are betting that a tighter market is easier to police and a lot less likely to spiral into the kind of mess that gets everyone’s attention for the wrong reasons.
