Colorado Just Dropped Its Prop Bet Restriction From Its Gaming Reform Bill — What That Means for Bettors

Prop bettors in Colorado dodged a significant restriction this week. Legislators voted on April 22 to remove a proposed ban on proposition bets from Senate Bill 131, the state’s broader sports betting reform measure. What had been shaping up as a meaningful limitation on same-game parlays and player prop markets has been stripped from the bill — and for bettors who rely on those bet types, that is unambiguously good news.

What SB 131 Originally Proposed

Colorado Senate Bill 131 was introduced as a package of reforms targeting what its sponsors described as abusive practices in the sports betting industry. Among the provisions that received the most attention was a ban on proposition bets — wagers on specific elements of a game or individual player performance that are not tied to which team wins or loses. Under the original language, offering or accepting a prop bet would have constituted a Class 2 misdemeanor for licensed operators.

The concern behind the provision was genuine: research cited during legislative discussions has linked rapid-fire prop and micro-betting formats to higher rates of compulsive gambling behavior, and the NCAA had publicly called in January for elimination of player prop wagers. But the practical stakes were enormous. Colorado’s total sports betting handle exceeded $6.5 billion in 2025, and the Division of Gaming estimated that banning prop bets would cost the state approximately $2.4 to $2.6 million in annual tax revenue — the majority of it earmarked for water projects under the Colorado Water Plan.

Why the Ban Was Dropped

The amendment to remove the prop bet ban was approved in committee on April 22 after a process that bill sponsor Sen. Matt Ball acknowledged was quick. Ball told Axios Denver the decision was made under significant pressure from the sports betting industry, noting that operators have “a lot of money, and we’re drastically outspent, and that definitely has an impact on bills, this one included.” He said removing the provision substantially reduced the fiscal impact and allowed the broader bill to preserve its remaining objectives.

Beyond the lobbying pressure, lawmakers had substantive concerns. Several on the Senate Finance Committee raised the point that a state ban on prop bets could redirect Colorado bettors to offshore platforms that continue to offer those markets outside of any consumer protection framework. If prop bets are popular enough that banning them drives players to unregulated offshore books, the state ends up worse off: it loses the tax revenue and loses the regulatory oversight. The prop bet ban was also seen by some legislators as a policy change significant enough that it should go back to Colorado voters, who had previously approved sports betting through a ballot measure.

What the Bill Still Does

With the prop bet provision removed, Senate Bill 131 retains a narrower set of reforms that passed the Senate on April 28 and moved to the House. The remaining provisions include a ban on accepting credit card deposits for sports betting transactions — something DraftKings had already implemented voluntarily in August 2025 and FanDuel followed in early March 2026. The bill also prohibits operators from sending push notifications or text messages soliciting bets or deposits, restricts advertisements from airing between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. or during live broadcasts of athletic competitions, bans the inclusion of enhanced payout promotions in ads, and limits each individual to no more than five separate deposits in a 24-hour period.

These remaining provisions are primarily aimed at reducing problem gambling behaviors and limiting the aggressive acquisition tactics that have drawn criticism from public health researchers and state officials. The prop bet question — whether Colorado ultimately restricts those markets — was effectively deferred rather than resolved. Ball’s comments suggest the door is not fully closed on future action.

What It Means for Bettors and for the Market

For bettors in Colorado, the removal of the prop bet restriction preserves one of the most widely used and profitable segments of the betting market. Same-game parlays built on player props have become a primary product offering for every major sportsbook, and any restriction would have significantly altered the betting landscape in the state. With the ban off the table, nothing changes about what Coloradans can wager on through licensed operators.

The episode also illustrates the political dynamics playing out around prop bets nationally. NCAA calls, public health arguments, and legislative momentum have put player props under scrutiny in multiple states — but the combination of tax revenue stakes and industry lobbying has consistently stopped outright bans short of enactment. Colorado is the latest state where the instinct to restrict was outweighed by fiscal realities. Whether that calculus shifts as problem gambling data accumulates will be worth watching through the remainder of the 2026 legislative cycle.