2026 SESSION
SENATE SUBSTITUTE
26108010D
SENATE BILL NO. 819
AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE
(Proposed by the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
on February 12, 2026)
(Patron Prior to Substitute—Senator Suetterlein)
A BILL to direct the Virginia Lottery to study the feasibility of furthering responsible gaming as it relates to the lottery, casino gaming, and sports betting, and to develop an implementation plan to require all lottery terminals to possess proper age verification software to ensure that a consumer is 18 years of age or older.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. § 1. That the Virginia Lottery shall study the feasibility of furthering responsible gaming as it relates to the lottery, casino gaming, and sports betting through the promulgation of regulations restricting (i) advertising for such gaming through mail or Short Message Service (SMS) text messages; (ii) targeted digital advertising for such gaming using personal data, including through the use of geolocation, consumer profiles, or consumer purchase history; and (iii) the use of individual player data for the marketing and advertising of such gaming. The Virginia Lottery shall additionally study the impact of including on all advertisements (a) a warning stating that the lottery is only for persons 18 years of age or older and that playing the lottery can be addictive and (b) the toll-free telephone number for the Virginia Problem Gambling Helpline. No later than October 1, 2026, the Director of the Virginia Lottery shall report the findings of such study to the Chairs of the House Committee on General Laws and the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology with policy recommendations regarding furthering responsible gaming through advertisement regulation.