Iowa commission approves sports betting rules
The local gambling commission IRGC approved the necessary rules to launch sports betting operations in Iowa next month.
US.- The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission (IRGC) gathered yesterday morning in West Des Moines to discuss and vote possible regulations for the upcoming sports betting industry. The IRGC approved the proposed rules and gambling facilities in the state are now eligible to launch sports betting on August 15.
It is no surprise that Iowa approved these rules to pave the way for sports betting by mid-August. The rules obtained unanimous approval by the IRGC. The sports betting licences for 18 of the 19 casinos in the state also received the green light.
Racing and Gaming Commission Administrator Brian Ohorilko said that the commission will meet the casinos in the next two weeks: “Those meetings are intended to work through every control that’s required in the rules to give feedback to the operators. [This is so] they know if they are okay in certain areas — or there are areas where they still need to go back and beef up.”
“The industry really requests a timeline that has been very aggressive, but the commission has been trying to keep up. We have been able to meet those deadlines, but we haven’t been able to meet with every applicant,” Ohorilko said.
The Prairie Meadows chief strategy officer said that the facility will start taking bets that exact day. “It will be just like a sportsbook in Las Vegas for all intents and purposes. There are mobile applications. We expect that to go live. We anticipate that to go live on the 15th. And certainly you can come into the shop to come into the casino to be verified you’re 21 years of age and not self-excluded, and you can establish an online gaming account as well,” said Brad Rhines, Senior VP at Prairie Meadows.
Iowa has been preparing its rules
The state regulator confirmed that gaming officials took notice of the legalisation of sports betting right after it happened. “We started monitoring this issue immediately after the Supreme Court ruling,” Ohorilko said. “Without that preparation, we never would have been able to implement this within the three months (since it was approved).”
“In the past, people either could bet on sports in Nevada, or they had to do so illegally through a bookmaker or an offshore website,” said Wes Ehrecke, president and CEO of the Iowa Gaming Association. “Now, people can do so in a legalised manner.”
