Maine to debate sports betting
Lawmakers in Maine will debate sports betting as three bills are pending in the State House and may legalise the segment this year.
US.- Maine may launch sports betting really soon as lawmakers will discuss the segment in the coming weeks. Three bills to regulate the segment are pending in the State House, whose members will assess them to decide whether to launch the segment.
“It is pretty obvious why we are doing it,” said Rep. Jeffrey Evangelos, a sponsor of one of the proposals. “It is fun and everyone else is doing it. Why shouldn’t we get a piece of it, too?”
However, differences remain on how to regulate the sports betting segment after PASPA got revoked.
“Anytime we expand gambling we have to consider the negative effects. That always becomes part of the equation,” said Sen. Louis Luchini, co-chairman of the Legislature’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee. “Gambling bills are always controversial. It is something you have to take the time and meet with all the parties and hash out something responsible.”
Rep. Evangelo’s bill would allow bets on professional and amateur sports at land-based and online venues. It foresees a US$30k licence fee and a 25% tax. “We are not reinventing anything. It is an established model that works,” he said, as the bill is based on New Jersey’s model.
