(ABC 6 News) – Senator John Marty (DFL-Roseville) says adults should be able to enjoy gambling, but if there are not the proper safeguards in place, it could turn recreational gamblers into addicts.

Marty says his legislation has the proper safeguards to mitigate addictive gambling, namely it would protect bettors from predatory marketing, youth and youth athletes, the integrity of sports and the state budget from additional costs as a result of the legislation.

“How do we protect people who might get hurt by it? And I think [I’m] hearing lot of people, bipartisan support for putting safeguards on it,” said Marty. “If we are going to expand gambling, it’s a huge expansion, if we are doing what’s been proposed, so I say, if we are going to do it, we got to do it with real safeguards.”

According to the Minnesota Alliance on Problem Gambling, 250,000 Minnesotans exhibit some sort of gambling problem and gamblers have the highest suicide rate of any addiction.

Marty says, with it being a short session, he’s not confident sports betting will get passed in 2024.

Governor Tim Walz says he does plan to sign a sports betting bill, if and when one arrives on his desk.