Legislative sessions have been quite busy this year when it comes to bills regarding sports gambling. More than ⅔ of the states in the country have proposed some form of bill leading towards expansion of gambling for sports within their state. Read on to catch the latest news for sports betting updates in New York, Tennessee, and Florida!
New York
Before New York can offer legalized sports betting, there must be regulations imposed. A draft to create those regulations was approved earlier this year, but it has not gone through a public comment period. It is standard for regulations to be published for 60 days, during which the public may comment and provide feedback on the regulations suggested.
A member of the New York Gaming Commission mentioned they expect the regulations to be published by March of next year. This means that sports betting won’t be available for another year, pushing it back to 2020.
The delay may not be a terrible thing for New Yorkers. The current plan for sports betting requires the placement of bets in-person, while online bets are still off the table. Representatives do want expansion of sports betting to include online and mobile options, but the Governor states that isn’t possible because of language in the Constitution of New York.
New York is interested in sports betting because of the potential revenue it could bring in. New York’s revenue was less than expected last year, which prompted the Senate to open their minds to gambling to make up for the loss.
New York seems reluctant, but they will have sports betting in some capacity by 2020. It may be another year or two after that for it to reach full legalization.
Florida
The Governor of Florida was involved in some suspicious activity lately, when he took a private flight from Jeffrey Soffer, owner of the Fontainebleau, despite having one available from the state. It is rumored that Soffer wishes to add slot machines to the Fontainebleau, located in Miami.
Considering that Florida’s Governor, Ron DeSantis, would be responsible for passing legislation regarding the slot machines, it immediately raises some eyebrows. Nonetheless, this is a positive sign that gambling may expand in the near future within Florida. Once regulations loosen regarding gambling, it opens the door for sports betting to make an appearance.
Florida might not have sports betting in the near future, but if slot machines make their way to the Fontainebleau, gambling on sports will be right around the corner.
Tennessee
The state of Tennessee has definitely turned a 180 when it comes to gambling and sports betting. They don’t have casinos or horse tracks, but you can play the lottery if you need some form of gambling.
Tennessee has shut down many bills that have been voted on, but this year may be a different tune for the state. There are currently three bills that are being proposed. Two of them are still in the General Assembly, one of which would make casinos legal within the state, and the other would analyze the amount of revenue lost by not having gambling legalized.
A third bill has already been sent up to the House and Senate and does have supporters, but there is no guarantee it will succeed. This bill differs from the other two, and is quite direct with it’s approach. It would allow sportsbooks to be formed in the state, with revenue being used to help improve technical and vocational schools, something the public certainly views as underfunded.
While a bill has been moved to a vote, it is not favored to pass. Tennessee still looks reluctant to legalize gambling of any form, so it’ll be a while until sports betting finds its way here.
