Kalshi Vermont: A State That Already Ran the Bidding Process

Kalshi Vermont is a different kind of case than most of this series, because Vermont did not leave the question open for a federal exchange to answer by default. The legislature wrote a licensing law, the state ran a competitive bid, and three operators — DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics — went live in January 2024. Kalshi was not part of that process and is not one of the three, so the honest answer starts with what Vermont already built before getting to what Kalshi is doing next to it.

Legal status in Vermont

Vermont's sports wagering framework is recent and narrow by design. Governor Phil Scott signed H.127 (Act 63 of 2023) in June 2023, carving sports wagering and fantasy sports contests out of the general gambling and lottery prohibitions in 13 V.S.A. chapter 51 and creating a standalone licensing structure instead. The Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery ran a competitive bidding process rather than open licensing, selected three operators — DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics — and the market went live January 11, 2024. It is online-only: Vermont has no retail sportsbooks, no commercial casinos, and no racetrack wagering, so a mobile app is the entire legal market. Each licensed operator pays the state a revenue share of at least 20% of adjusted gross sports wagering revenue, and the law separately bars wagering on Vermont high school, collegiate, and other youth sports events. The minimum age is 21. Kalshi holds none of the three competitively bid licenses and is not seeking one — it lists sports event contracts under its CFTC designated-contract-market status, the same federal argument it makes in every state. No Vermont-specific lawsuit, cease-and-desist, or court order against Kalshi has surfaced, and Vermont does not appear on Kalshi's own list of states where it has paused sports contracts, a list that includes Nevada, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, Montana, and Arizona. Vermont has still weighed in at the coalition level: Attorney General Charity Clark joined the 38-state amicus brief in April 2026 backing Massachusetts's Supreme Judicial Court lawsuit against Kalshi. Vermont's name also does not appear among the five states publicly identified as declining to sign the 44-state letter to the CFTC in July 2026 (Florida, Georgia, New Hampshire, Missouri, and Texas), which is consistent with Vermont being among the signatories arguing the agency lacks authority over sports event contracts — though this page relies on the public reporting available, not a confirmed signatory list. Two coalition signatures and zero Vermont-specific enforcement action is where the state sits today.

State gambling authority: Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery (licenses and regulates the three competitively bid sportsbook operators; no licensing authority over Kalshi); Attorney General Charity Clark's office (signed the April 2026 multistate amicus brief against Kalshi; no Vermont-specific suit filed)

Kalshi Vermont starts from a fact most states on this site don’t have: Vermont already ran a licensing process and picked winners. Act 63 of 2023 set up a competitive bid, the Department of Liquor and Lottery chose three operators, and DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics have been live since January 11, 2024. Kalshi wasn’t in that bid and isn’t one of the three.

Vermont Built a Small, Deliberate Market

Governor Phil Scott signed H.127 — Act 63 — in June 2023, carving sports wagering and fantasy sports out of the general gambling and lottery ban in 13 V.S.A. chapter 51 and replacing it with a standalone licensing structure. Rather than open the door to any operator who applies, the way New Jersey or Colorado did, Vermont ran a competitive bidding process and selected exactly three: DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics. There are no retail sportsbooks, no commercial casinos, and no racetrack wagering in Vermont — the mobile market the state built by bid is the entire legal market.

Vermont’s sports wagering framework:

Act 63 of 2023 (H.127), signed June 2023
Online-only; no retail books, casinos, or tracks
Three competitively bid operators: DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics
Live since January 11, 2024
Minimum 20% of adjusted gross revenue paid to the state
21+ minimum age; no betting on VT high school or youth sports

Is Kalshi Legal in Vermont? It Was Never Part of the Bid

Kalshi holds none of Vermont’s three sports wagering licenses and isn’t applying for one — its sports event contracts run on the CFTC’s designated-contract-market status, the same federal argument the company makes nationwide. No Vermont court order, lawsuit, or cease-and-desist against Kalshi has surfaced, and Vermont is not on Kalshi’s own list of states where sports contracts have been paused — a list that includes Nevada, Massachusetts, Ohio, Michigan, Montana, and Arizona. That silence isn’t Vermont clearing Kalshi; it’s a state that hasn’t needed to act, because its own market question was already settled by statute before Kalshi’s national fight picked up in 2026.

Two coalition signatures, zero Vermont-specific action. Attorney General Charity Clark joined the 38-state amicus brief backing Massachusetts’s lawsuit against Kalshi in April 2026. Vermont doesn’t appear among the five states publicly named as declining to sign the 44-state CFTC letter that July, which points toward Vermont being a signatory there too — though this page only reports what’s publicly confirmed, not a full signatory list.

Is Kalshi Legit in Vermont?

As a company, yes — CFTC designation since 2020, KYC-verified accounts, dollar settlement, the same baseline this site applies in every state. Vermont’s Department of Liquor and Lottery has no licensing authority over Kalshi to weigh in on that question one way or the other; its mandate stops at the three operators it bid out.

How Safe Is Kalshi for Vermont Traders Right Now?

You can open an account and trade from Vermont today; nothing currently blocks it. Safe here means CFTC oversight and identity verification, not an endorsement from any Vermont agency — Vermont’s only licensed sports wagering seal belongs to DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics, not to a federally designated exchange operating alongside them.

A state that already ran a careful, small-bid licensing process is still not a state where a Kalshi contract carries less risk. Trading event contracts can lose the full stake regardless of how orderly Vermont’s own market looks. 21+ only; the National Problem Gambling Helpline, 1-800-522-4700, is free and confidential.

Kalshi Vermont — Frequently Asked Questions

Is Kalshi legal in Vermont?

No Vermont statute, court order, or cease-and-desist names Kalshi. Vermont's sports wagering law, Act 63 of 2023, built a licensing lane for three competitively bid operators and never contemplated a CFTC-regulated exchange. Kalshi operates on its federal designation instead, and Vermont's Attorney General has joined a multistate brief arguing that federal designation shouldn't override state gambling law — but that's a position taken in someone else's case, not a Vermont ruling.

Is Kalshi one of the three sportsbooks licensed in Vermont?

No. Vermont ran a competitive bidding process under the Department of Liquor and Lottery and selected exactly three operators — DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics — which launched January 11, 2024. Kalshi did not participate in that bid and holds no Vermont sports wagering license. It lists sports event contracts under a separate federal framework entirely.

Is Kalshi legit in Vermont?

As a company, yes — the same national baseline applies here as everywhere: CFTC designation since 2020, KYC-verified accounts, dollar settlement. Vermont's Department of Liquor and Lottery has no jurisdiction to certify or reject that, since its licensing authority covers the three operators it bid out, not a federally designated exchange.

Is Kalshi safe to use in Vermont right now?

You can open an account and trade from Vermont today; nothing currently blocks it, and Vermont isn't on Kalshi's own list of states where it has paused sports contracts. Safe here means CFTC oversight and identity verification, not a Vermont regulatory seal — the state's only sports wagering licenses belong to DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics.

Why does Vermont only have three sports betting apps instead of open licensing?

Act 63 set up a competitive bid rather than an open-license model like New Jersey's. The Department of Liquor and Lottery evaluated proposals and picked three operators, each paying the state at least 20% of adjusted gross sports wagering revenue. It's a smaller, more controlled market by design — one reason a fourth, federally regulated product like Kalshi sits outside the structure rather than applying to join it.

Has Vermont's attorney general taken action against Kalshi?

Not directly. Attorney General Charity Clark joined the 38-state amicus brief in April 2026 backing Massachusetts's lawsuit against Kalshi at that state's Supreme Judicial Court, and Vermont is not named among the handful of states that declined to sign the 44-state CFTC letter in July 2026. Neither is a Vermont-specific lawsuit or enforcement order — both are the state adding its name to arguments made elsewhere.

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