Kansas legislators continued their push to legalize sports betting in the state by introducing a new bill called SB 283.
The new bill was filed last week and will permit mobile sports bets across the state without requiring in-person registration, with no carve-out for college sports, and will feature low tax rates to entice gambling firms.
Operators will be allowed two brands or skins in the state. Sports betting venues will include “gaming facility managers” and possibly sports venues which means that mobile sports betting in Kansas will have to be connected to a retail site. There are four commercial casinos in Kansas and five tribal casinos who should be interested in the sports betting market.
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Sports betting will be managed by the Kansas Lottery, with support from the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission, whose primary tasks would be to oversee advertising and self-exclusion lists. The Federal and State Affairs Committee will deliberate on the bill on Jan 29.
Kansas has expedited their sports betting drive due to pressure caused by neighbouring states’ legalising sports betting. Legislators fear that, if Kansans cannot gamble legally in their state, they will simply drive to other states to do so, costing the state millions in potential revenue each year. Colorado legalised sports betting in November 2019, and is already gearing for their first legal bets on May 1, 2020. Nebraska and Missouri both have sports betting bills on their docket, but reports on their progress have so far been sparse.
SB 283 will also allow tribal casinos to renegotiate their pacts if they wish to enter the sports betting market. The bill defines “tribal gaming” as distinct from both “bets” and “lotteries”, which means that the tribal casinos’ pact of the state will have to be amended if they are to offer sports betting.
SB 283 is different from previous sports betting legislation, which set a 50% tax rate, restricted mobile options, and required official league data. That bill failed to get far among lawmakers. SB 283 takes a friendlier stance with the sports betting industry, with a 10% tax on mobile betting gross revenue, and 7.5% tax on retail. The official league data requirement was also removed.
Currently only Michigan, Tennessee, and Illinois have legalised sports betting with the official league data mandate; live sports betting is not yet available in those states.
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