(The Center Square) – Full approval of two sports betting suppliers has been granted by the North Carolina oversight panel ahead of the March 11 launch of legal sports gambling.
Another 14 were granted provisional licenses to support operators, Sterl Carpenter said during Wednesday’s meeeting of the North Carolina Lottery Commission.
Carpenter, the commission’s deputy executive director of sports betting, said, “We’ve had several meetings with operators to do walk throughs and do certifications on their platforms. This will be ongoing and continue the next few weeks.”
Chairman Ripley Rand said significant strides are being made ahead of the mobile sports betting at the launch.
Carpenter told the commission’s Sports Betting Committee the goal is to get all certifications done by Friday of next week. That is a date set for certified operators to begin registering customers, who would then be allowed to fund their accounts.
Carpenter noted that staff will continue to work with operators who have not gained certification by that date to do so as soon as possible. Bet365, ESPN Bet, Fanatics, FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Underdog Sports, and Caesars are on track to go live at launch.
The commission unanimously approved a voluntary self-exclusion program and a series of compliance forms, as well as policies restricting staff, commissioners, and their families from participating in sports wagering.
The self-exclusion program mandated by law will allow individuals to exclude themselves from sports wagering in North Carolina for terms of one, three, or five years, or to sign up for a lifetime ban. The process can be completed through online forms at NCgaming.gov, or in person at lottery claims offices in Charlotte, Asheville, Greensboro, Wilmington, Raleigh or Greenville.
“This information will be securely provided to all North Carolina sports wagering operators,” Carpenter said.
Compliance forms approved on Wednesday include a monthly attestation of compliance, an error report form for when illegal sports wagers occur, and an attestation regarding monetary compliance with state reserve requirements to cover outstanding liabilities. Commissioners also approved an annual Tribal Gaming Enterprise Agreement for tribal operators.
Other approvals included a complaint and wager dispute process that will allow the commission to take up complaints that are not resolved directly with operators; and updated prohibitions against Lottery Commission members, employees, immediate family members in the same household, and those serving on leadership and regulatory teams from placing bets.
The updated policy prohibiting participation “is the latest in a line of policies that began 18 years ago,” Rand said.
“I’m proud North Carolina will continue to be a national leader in this regard,” he said.
