Pennsylvania’s gambling industry is bringing in billions of dollars, but lawmakers are increasingly concerned about what happens when betting becomes as easy as checking a phone. A newly formed bipartisan Problem Gambling Caucus is looking to turn those concerns into practical safeguards, with a focus on protecting young people and making online gambling safer.
Announced on October 21, the caucus brings together six state lawmakers from both parties, including Senate chair Joe Picozzi and House members Ben Sanchez and Jamie Flick. The group will begin meeting formally in January 2027, when the General Assembly returns for its next legislative session.
Its current priorities include reducing young people’s exposure to gambling advertising while expanding public education and exploring stronger controls over how online gambling platforms engage customers.
Research Adds Urgency to the Push for Safer Gambling
The concern comes as online betting becomes a more prominent part of Pennsylvania’s gambling landscape. A Penn State University study published this year found that 30% of state adults participated in online gambling in 2025, up from 20% in 2024. Researchers estimated that between 2.5% and 6.4% of adults showed indicators of gambling problems, while roughly one-quarter to three in ten were classified as being at risk.
Young people are a particular focus, and lawmakers have highlighted concerns about gambling promotions reaching younger audiences through social media. At the same time, support services reported that adults aged 18 to 24 accounted for the highest volume of outreach calls to the Council on Compulsive Gambling of Pennsylvania in December 2025.
As many of the members would agree, the growing accessibility of betting apps calls for protections that reflect how people gamble today. The challenge, lawmakers argue, is ensuring that convenience does not come at the expense of consumer safeguards.
Betting Apps and Promotions Are Key
The caucus’s formation comes alongside a wider legislative effort to strengthen responsible gambling measures. Representatives Tarik Khan and Jamie Flick have advanced a proposed package informed by a state study of gambling practices and consumer protections.
Potential measures include deposit and loss limits, restrictions on push notifications and text messages designed to encourage further betting, limits on micro-betting markets and tighter controls on VIP programmes and artificial intelligence-driven promotions. The proposals also address gambling advertising aimed at minors and young adults, alongside funding for prevention, treatment and independent research.
These measures are proposals rather than enacted requirements, but they indicate the direction some lawmakers want Pennsylvania to take. The emphasis is shifting beyond encouraging individual responsibility towards examining how gambling products are marketed and designed.
