It has been a successful year for gambling legislation with a whirlwind of activity on sports betting. In just over a year since the US Supreme Court struck down the federal ban, sports betting is now legal in 20 US jurisdictions and operational in 13, with more set to come on line later this fall.
Most legislatures have wrapped up regular sessions for the year, but a handful remain in session with chances of legalizing sports betting – among them Massachusetts, Michigan and Ohio.
US jurisdictions with legal sports betting operations: Arkansas, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Oregon and West Virginia.
Jurisdictions that have legalized and await launch: District of Columbia, Illinois, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Puerto Rico and Tennessee.
Each of the 20 jurisdictions have taken a unique approach to sports betting laws, creating a patchwork of regulations with varying tax rates, licensing fees and rules. The majority of states require sports betting to be operated by existing casinos and racetracks, with non-casino states opting to give state lotteries control, and some states allowing non-gaming locations such as sports arenas and lottery retailers to participate.
Of note, none of the jurisdictions has awarded so-called integrity fees to sports leagues, though Tennessee will become the first state to mandate the use of official league data and allow sports leagues the opportunity to restrict certain betting types.
Meanwhile, a push for federal oversight has been reignited, with US Sens. Chuck Schumer and Mitt Romney working together on legislation to set federal guidelines for states that legalize sports betting. There is no timeline yet for introduction of the bill, but it’s possible it will be similar to legislation introduced late last year by Schumer and former Sen.Orrin Hatch to require states to seek federal approval of their sports betting laws.
Other highlights:
- Maine legislators approved a sports betting bill that has yet to become law. Gov. Janet Mills has not acted on legislation due to concerns over expanded gambling. If she doesn’t veto the bill within the first three days of the next legislative session – whether a special session or the next regular session in January – it becomes law.
- North Carolina will allow retail sports betting at the Cherokee Indians’ two Harrah’s-branded casinos. The state also will study the potential of opening the market statewide to commercial operators.
- Colorado voters will decide whether to approve sports betting in a November referendum. Legislation passed earlier this year that would allow the state’s 33 casinos, which are located in historic mining towns, to open sportsbooks and to offer statewide online sports betting.
- Virginia is likely to have sports betting next year under legislation that approved a study of the best policies for implementing sports betting and casinos.
- California has seen efforts for a 2020 referendum, but it is considered a long shot along with the other two most populous states, Florida and Texas.
- Wisconsin legislators have finally indicated an interest in exploring sports betting legislation next year.
- The only states with no official indication of interest in sports betting are Alaska, Nebraska, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming.
Laura Briggs is the Public Policy Editor at Fantini Research, publisher of newsletters and research serving institutional investors and C-suite executives in the gaming industry. You can learn more about Fantini Research and the Public Policy Review at www.fantiniresearch.com. Free trial subscriptions to both the daily report and the Public Policy Review are available upon request.
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