Legislative season is well underway in the US and once again sports betting and iGaming are on the agenda for many.

At last count, over 50 bills pertain to the sector and on the latest episode of iGaming Daily, Jessica Welman, Editor of SBC Americas, was joined by Charlie Horner, SBC’s Media Manager to delve deeper into the chaos.

In Ohio, operators are facing the prospect of yet another tax hike, doubling the tax rate for sports betting from 20% to 40%. The proposal was included in Governor Mike DeWine’s state budget plan and follows DeWine increasing the tax from 10% to 20% in 2023 – just six months after sports betting launched in the state.

Jess said: “To go from 10%, to 20% and now 40%, it takes you from being on the low end of things to basically trailing only New York in terms of oppressive tax rates. I feel very bad for the number of small operators that came into Ohio under the pretence of a 10% tax rate and a low licensing fee.”

Sports betting is often included in proposed budgets for higher taxation, however, Charlie noted that given the often low margins in the sector, “taxing it to the eyeballs” isn’t going to significantly impact closing economic shortfalls. 

Although there are so many bills currently being considered, the duo both agreed that it is unlikely that many, if any at all, pass and make their way into law.

Considering the potential reasons for this, they pointed to the impact that the “vested interests” of some stakeholders can have in stalling efforts to progress legislation.

“A lot of the time when these bills are going through, each state has its own different context in terms of it will either be tribal interests or the land-based casinos interests,” explained Charlie. 

“You have to account for these vested interests because they carry a lot of weight. Sometimes you just need a compromise or a deal that you can make through back channels so that you can get these people just to agree [but] it’s particularly difficult.”

Another notable piece of legislation is a proposal in Connecticut to ban ticket courier services – a practice that allows the purchase of lottery tickets online on behalf of others.

Although regulated in New Jersey and New York, lottery couriers, such as JackPocket, fall outside of gambling’s regulatory remit across other states. As a result, there have been calls to clamp down on the practice as stakeholders argue they are part of the online gambling ecosystem.

On the situation, Charlie said: “I think that’s a really interesting one to keep an eye on because the [state[ lotteries have had a big influence in the past in a lot of states and their influence has dwindled as online sports betting, and iGaming in certain states, has risen.

“Maybe look out for some bills that give a little bit of control back to the lotteries, especially if you’re looking to maximise how much money is going straight back into an account from the state that you reside in.”