Last week the Missouri State Senate Appropriations Committee began debate on three separate sports betting bills that could pave the way to legalizing sports betting in Missouri. The bills have significant support, and they could pave the way to the state opening up for sports betting as early as August of 2022.
Missouri poised to become one of the next states to legalize sports betting
The debate is on in the Missouri State Senate over three bills that would allow
legal sports betting
in the state. The two of the bills are identical and mirror similar legislation currently under review in the state’s House of Representatives. The goal is to settle on parameters that fit the needs of the various interested parties in the state. Given the amount of traction and support the bills have received, it appears to be a matter of when, and not if, Missouri will join the growing list of states where sports betting is legal.
Senators Dan Hegeman and Tony Luetkemeyer are sponsors of the bills, SB 1046 and SB 1061, that have the most support. These bills have earned the support of a six-team coalition made up of the St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Royals, Kansas City Chiefs, St. Louis Blues, St. Louis City Soccer Club, and the Kansas City Current of the National Women’s Soccer League. Under the proposed terms, each of the teams would be eligible to operate their own online sports betting platform.
The two bills would allow for retail sports betting at all of the state’s 13 casinos. It would also allow for 39 online “skins” or platforms to be operated, one each for the state’s six professional sports teams with the remaining skins allocated amongst the state’s current casino operators. It would impose a 10% tax on all
online sports betting
revenue generated, which is competitive with neighboring states but is lower than the 21% tax currently imposed on casino gaming revenue.
An alternative bill with a higher tax rate
The third bill currently up for debate is SB 643, proposed by Denny Hoskins. The bill differs from other proposed legislation in a variety of ways. The first is the tax rate, which is set at 21%, mirroring the current taxes on casino gaming revenue. It would also include the ability for the state’s lottery to participate in mobile sports betting. The bill does not guarantee the ability for the state’s professional sports teams to participate, although it does not explicitly prohibit them from doing so. It carries an additional restriction that would prevent operators from offering wagers on collegiate sporting events that involve teams based in Missouri.
St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III, the son of Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr., clearly prefers SB 1046 and SB 1061, which would feature the lower tax rate and guarantee his Cardinals the ability to operate their own mobile betting platform. He expressed his preference by saying “We want to make sure there is no temptation for fans to go to other states for better pricing, or have taxes choke the economics of the operators who we need to be successful.”
Remaining concerns and roadblocks
While Missouri legalizing sports betting seems like a matter of time, there are still hurdles to cross. The specifics of the bill need to be determined, and concerns from legislators about the methodology behind distributing the tax revenue generated, specifically to rural areas of the state, also need to be addressed. The current proposed legislation would allow it to be implemented as soon as August of 2022, but the diverse opinions and debate required to unite them makes the Spring of 2023 a more likely timeframe for implementation.
Logistics and timeframe aside, Missouri residents are likely to have access to legal sports betting in the not too distant future. With projections for the state ranging from $15 million to as much as $163 million in annual tax revenue, the benefits are too large to ignore. Missouri residents are already utilizing illegal betting markets as well as traveling to neighboring states Iowa, Illinois, and Tennessee, therefore it is in the best interest of Missouri to act as quickly as possible to ensure that valuable revenue isn’t lost. We’ll keep you up to date on the latest advancements in MO with our
gambling news
here at PlayersBest – keep us bookmarked!
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