Iowa Senate Votes to Allow Fantasy Sports

DES MOINES  (Associated Press) — The Senate has passed a bill that would allow a person in Iowa to win money in fantasy sports contests.

The Senate voted 32-16 to approve the bill Thursday. It now heads to the House, where lawmakers are considering a similar bill.

Current law allows people in Iowa to participate in fantasy sports contests, but they can't win prizes. This bill would allow winnings.

Fantasy sports contests typically let participants build teams online that compete against other user-generated teams.

A similar bill failed in the Senate last year. Democratic Sen. Jeff Danielson, chairman of the state government committee, says the bill would align with laws in over 40 other states.

Some lawmakers expressed concern about the out-of-state companies running fantasy sports contests and the amount of money they may collect.