Share 
Georgia, Florida, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota and Texas were the only states whose attorneys general did not sign a letter this summer challenging federal control of sports contracts on prediction markets, according to The Hill.
The letter, sent to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) by 44 attorneys general, argues the agency lacks authority over sports event contracts offered by platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. The signers want states to oversee those contracts the same way they regulate sports betting and other gambling.
The dispute is now moving toward the U.S. Supreme Court. New Jersey has asked the justices to decide who regulates these products after the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2–1 decision, blocked the state from enforcing its sports gambling laws against Kalshi. The 9th Circuit reached the opposite conclusion in a Nevada case, ruling the state can regulate Kalshi’s sports contracts. Conflicting appeals court rulings are a key factor when the Supreme Court decides which cases to hear.
Prediction market operators and the Trump administration favor keeping the platforms under federal oversight. The states pushing back argue that sports contracts are effectively sports betting and belong under state gambling law, along with the tax revenue that comes with it.
The justices are expected to consider New Jersey’s petition at a private conference after their new term begins.
Sports betting is still not legal in Georgia, where the House rejected a constitutional amendment in March 2026. CFTC-regulated prediction markets currently accept Georgia users, and the state has not moved against them. A Supreme Court ruling in favor of the states could change that nationwide.
Photo by Phil Goodwin on Unsplash
