A costs that would ban college player props at sportsbooks in New Jersey is getting traction in the legislature.

The New Jersey Assembly's tourist, gaming, and arts committee voted Thursday to A4905, advancing the legislation and moving it closer to passage in Trenton.

A4905 - and its twin in the New Jersey Senate, S3080 - would prohibit sportsbooks from using or accepting "any wager on a player-specific proposition bet on any collegiate sport or athletic occasion."

Simply put, there would disappear college gamer props for Garden State punters at in your area regulated sportsbooks if the expense becomes law.

While New Jersey sports wagering guidelines forbid wagering on in-state college groups, they allow banking on college player props, a minimum of for now.

"As one of the first states to legislate sports betting, I believe that it is our duty to make sure that we set the very best example we perhaps can for all others who want to follow our lead," said Democratic Assemblyman Sterley Stanley, A4905's sponsor, in a statement following the committee vote. "Even as a staunch supporter of the sports wagering market, I believe it is incumbent upon us to acknowledge the unbelievable pressures that college athletes deal with in between their scholastic and athletic duties. My legislation ensures that they do not have those pressures intensified by issue bettors that have pertained to bother our college athletes when bettors lose cash on college player proposition bets."

Be 'sensible'

If New Jersey were to prohibit college player props, it would continue the recent trend of states kiboshing those wagering markets over concerns of student-athlete harassment and abuse, amongst other things.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and its president, former Massachusetts governor Charlie Baker, have been lobbying states for prop bans with those issues in mind. The NCAA supports A4905.

"Sports wagering is on the increase, and with it, so is the threat for college athletes, and there is no question they are getting harassed by wagerers," Austin Meo, the assistant director of government relations for the NCAA, told the Assembly committee on Thursday. "That threatens the integrity of the video game, and it threatens the wellness of college professional athletes all over."

Meo said that 20 states allow college player props in some form. However, he also kept in mind that at the start of 2024, there were 24 states, before Ohio, Maryland, Vermont, and Louisiana moved this year to restrict those betting markets.

"Taking an affordable action that half the states with sports wagering have required to restrict prop bets is something New Jersey can do to help react to this serious concern," Meo stated.

Highway to 'hell'

There is no assurance New Jersey will go through with a college player prop ban, although current history recommends there is an opportunity. Nevertheless, A4905 and S3080 will deal with opposition from certified sportsbook operators and other interested parties in the Garden State, one of the most fully grown markets for legal sports wagering in the U.S.

Lobbyist Bill Pascrell, of Princeton Public Affairs Group, informed the Assembly committee on Thursday that there is "no evidence or favorable info" from the concerned celebrations that permitting prop bets makes players more susceptible than permitting betting on college teams.

Pascrell said banning college player props will move that action to prohibited and overseas sportsbooks, even if that action is a fairly small percentage of all sports betting.

"The states do not have the long arm of the law to reach the black market," Pascrell said in opposing the costs. "This makes sure that folks that wager this kind of prop bet, and it's a small segment of the industry, around 2 to 4%, will simply go to the black market. And we do not see any proof positive that by using this bet, we're making folks more vulnerable, due to the fact that the bet will simply relocate to the black market."

Pascrell stated New Jersey's ban on in-state college wagering pressed banking on those schools in basketball competitions to the black market or sportsbooks in close-by states.

"I know this bill has the very best of objectives, but I think in some cases the street to hell is paved by the best of intentions, and I believe we must reassess this concern, since I'm worried about the explosion of the black market and this will assist those in the black market," Pascrell informed the committee.

College gamer prop wagering is completed in Ohio as of March 1. Matthew Schuler, executive director of the Ohio Casino Control Commission, revealed today he approved the NCAA's demand to ban such betting. Any remaining futures should be voided by next Friday.