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Published: June 11, 2026

Legal Gambling Industry To CFTC: Agency ‘Corrupt,’ Proposed Rules ‘Mock’ Congress

Indian Gaming Association (IGA) Chair David Z. Bean said exactly what many against prediction market sports event contracts were thinking Wednesday, though they may have been too polite to say it.

"It’s just the big middle finger,” Bean said of the proposed rules released by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). "Chair [Michael] Selig said he was going to wait for the courts to decide, but that’s not true.

"I’m not surprised. I’m definitely disappointed, but not surprised. We’ve still got work to do. We’re still pushing that snowball uphill.”

Bean’s comments on the New Normal tribal webinar were part of a chorus of anti-prediction voices that reacted with anger, frustration, and a renewed vigor to fight after the CFTC announced proposed rules that would put a framework around prediction markets and sports event contracts, which have been roiling the legal sports betting industry for more than a year. The plan was published seven weeks after a public comment period on an advanced notice of proposed rule making closed. About 1,500 comments were filed.

"We can’t be surprised,” IGA Executive Director Jason Giles said. "It’s a jam job. It’s corrupt. They blew past three or four different requirements with [Office of Management and Budget] complicity. They needed other agencies’ complicitness in order to jam this rule through in such an extremely short timeline with over 1,500 comments.

"You’re telling me that in [this short time], they looked at over 1,500 comments and made any substantive changes to the rule they already had in their back pocket written by the prediction markets and they’re just slapping together now?”

Giles said that major rules have to go through the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs before being evaluated for economic impact. And if "it’s declared a major rule, they have to engage in some more consultation, and some more justification. … Clearly, this is a major rule that is affecting billions of dollars and it’s not even a question that it’s a major rule.”

Despite that, Giles said, the OMB under Director Russ Vought just "said it’s not a major rule. … This whole thing just shows you they [CFTC] don’t care about being sued, they are going to violate at least three or four provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act.”