A pair of Democrats in the state Assembly want to place new limits on advertising and promotions by mobile sports betting companies.

Phil Steck proposes banning advertising by or on behalf of mobile sports wagering license holders during the broadcast of any live sporting event while Robert Carroll is pushing a bill that includes its own version of a ban on advertising during live sports events by banning advertising between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. and during live sports events. Carroll’s bill also includes a limit on wagers by an individual of $5,000 during a 24-hour period and prohibits advertising practices including “odds boosts” and promotions designed to induce gambling through “bonus bets” and “no sweat bets.” Bettors would also no longer be allowed to place more than five deposits during a 24-hour period while mobile sports betting operators would face limits regarding targeting minors and prohibitions on providing information on placing sports wagers.

We can’t necessarily argue with Steck or Carroll about the issues created by problem gambling. We’ve been saying for years the state needed to spend more on gambling addiction programs if it was going to legalize more forms of betting and build more casinos.

But it’s hilarious to us that nobody thought, when legislation was being written to allow mobile sports wagering in New York, that gaming companies wouldn’t immediately advertise during live sporting events or, even better, sponsor sports broadcasts. In 2018, sports betting advertising on television was $17.6 million. In 2022, that number had increased to $278.4 million. In the same time frame, monthly calls to the National Problem Gambling Hotline increased by 124%. If the roles were reversed, wouldn’t you spend as much money as necessary to get your message out in front of such a captive audience? We don’t blame gaming companies. There was no prohibition on how they advertise their product. This was an absolute failure on the part of the state Legislature and governor’s office when mobile sports gaming was legalized. Who’d have thought that Pandora would have come out of her box when you opened it? Everyone knew it was coming except for the legislators who wrote the law and the governor who signed the law.

Steck and Carroll now find themselves trying to cram Pandora back in her box. We say good luck.