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The #2 Texas state official called on lawmakers to study \u201cthe sudden inundation of prediction market gambling\u201c as other jurisdictions take the platforms to court.<\/p>\n
Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor and President of the Senate in Texas, has included a study of prediction markets and crypto and blockchain as part of legislative priorities for the state\u2019s next legislative session, scheduled to begin in January.<\/p>\n
In a Friday announcement, the lieutenant governor\u2019s office issued<\/a> 2026 interim charges for Texas Senate committees to study in preparation for the next legislature. Patrick said that the charges were intended to \u201cadvance the priorities of Texas\u2019 conservative majority,\u201d including an analysis of prediction markets and digital assets.<\/p>\n According to the charges, Patrick wants lawmakers to focus on \u201cclosing gambling loopholes\u201d by studying \u201cthe sudden inundation of prediction market gambling and the exploitation of federal law to circumvent Texas gambling prohibitions\u201d on elections.<\/p>\n As part of an initiative on financial technology, he called for an evaluation of the state\u2019s \u201ccoordination with federal rules\u201d on crypto and blockchain and examination of crypto kiosks in the Lone Star state.\u00a0<\/p>\n Texas has some of the strictest laws in the country concerning sports betting and gambling, which is largely restricted to casinos on Native American reservations and the state\u2019s lottery system. Many gaming authorities in other US states have filed lawsuits against prediction market platforms<\/a> like Kalshi and Polymarket over sports and election wagers, but Texas was not among them as of Tuesday.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Related: <\/strong><\/em>What\u2019s at stake for crypto as primaries begin in 3 US states<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n The Texas legislature meets every two years and is scheduled to return for a 140-day session in January 2027. In its 2025 legislative session, lawmakers proposed a Bitcoin reserve bill<\/a>, which was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott in June.<\/p>\n Among Patrick\u2019s charges included a study of the \u201cimpact of AI on the Texas workforce and its implications for economic competitiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n The notice came as reports suggested that Google would support a multibillion-dollar data center<\/a> in Texas leased to Anthropic. The project, expected to exceed $5 billion initially, comes as many mining companies in the US are pivoting to AI and high-performance computing<\/a> amid increasing mining difficulty and falling crypto prices.<\/p>\nAI is also under scrutiny as Anthropic plans Texas expansion<\/h2>\n