Illinois to take time to legalise sports betting

Lawmakers expect to pass bills to regulate the segment but say they won’t rush it and will take their time to assess the best way to do so.

US.- The Supreme Court’s ruling on the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) paved the road for every state in the US to legalise sports betting. Illinois lawmakers are expected to pass their own legislation and get the segment going soon but assure they won’t rush it and will take their time to analyse the best regulatory framework.

State Sen. Steve Stadelman, chairman of the gaming committee, projected that the pace of the panel’s work (which has been discussing the issue since before the PASPA revoke) will quicken. However, he said it’s unlikely that a new bill will be up for a vote before the General Assembly ends on May 31st. “I think that this will be something that will be discussed and negotiated in the months ahead,” he said, adding: “We’re looking at this fall or maybe early next year when we see something concrete.”

State Rep. Lou Lang added: “I learned that some states were so much in a hurry to pass a law on this that they screwed it up. We’re not going to screw it up. We’re going to do it right. And I’m not going to put a (House) bill together and get it out there for people to look at until I’m comfortable that it’s the right bill.”