Unite Here, the 300,000-member union representing workers at commercial and tribal casinos, hotels, and food service businesses across the United States and Canada, on June 4, 2026 announced its support for a U.S. Senate bill that would classify prediction markets as gambling and prohibit them from offering sports-related event contracts. The move added labor's voice to a growing coalition seeking federal action against platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket.
The union's president, Gwen Mills, issued a statement backing S. 4160, the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, which is sponsored by Senators John Curtis of Utah, Adam Schiff of California, and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada. The bill would ban prediction market contracts tied to sporting events, elections, war and national emergencies, legal proceedings, and other real-world outcomes, placing those products under the same regulatory framework that governs traditional gambling.
Jobs and Sovereignty at the Center
Mills framed the issue in terms of the threat prediction markets pose to the livelihoods of union members employed in the gaming industry. "Their livelihoods are now threatened by prediction markets conducting illegal sports betting in violation of Tribal sovereignty and state laws across the country," she said. "Congress must take immediate action to ban prediction markets from conducting sports betting and casino-style games."
Unite Here represents over 100,000 employees of commercial and tribal casinos specifically, and the union's concern is that Kalshi and similar platforms are drawing gambling activity away from licensed venues — reducing customer traffic and, by extension, hours and jobs for its members. Tribal partners have made the same argument in federal and state courts throughout 2026, filing lawsuits against both Kalshi and Polymarket in multiple states.
Mills's statement tied the union's endorsement directly to the ongoing congressional debate over the CLARITY Act, which is primarily a cryptocurrency market structure bill but has no current provisions specifically governing prediction markets. "As the Senate considers cryptocurrency market structure legislation, this is an urgent moment to reaffirm congressional intent that gambling is governed by Tribal and state authorities," Mills wrote.
Legislative and Regulatory Backdrop
The Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act represents one of the most significant federal-level efforts to resolve a jurisdictional dispute that has produced conflicting court rulings across multiple circuits. Kalshi and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have argued that event contracts are federally preempted financial instruments governed by the Commodity Exchange Act, giving the CFTC exclusive oversight. The Third Circuit sided with that view in April 2026, blocking New Jersey from enforcing state gambling laws against Kalshi.
However, state attorneys general and tribal nations have continued to file new lawsuits, including a June 4 action by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez. Minnesota became the first state to enact a legislative ban on prediction markets in May 2026, with the CFTC and Kalshi both suing to block the law. A Nevada court issued a preliminary injunction in June against Polymarket, and the New Mexico tribes and state are pressing forward with their own cases.
The legislative question — whether Congress will explicitly define prediction market sports contracts as gambling — may ultimately determine the outcome of the broader dispute. If the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act passes, it would override the federal preemption argument Kalshi and similar platforms have relied on in court. If it fails or stalls, the current patchwork of federal and state litigation is likely to continue through the rest of 2026 and into 2027.
For bettors using prediction market platforms for sports wagering, the growing legislative and legal pressure is a meaningful risk factor. Users should monitor federal court rulings and the status of the CLARITY Act and the Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act as the summer progresses.
