Missouri lawmakers pre-file bills to legalise sports betting
Three Missouri lawmakers have pre-filed legislation that would allow legal sports betting for state residents.
US.- Lawmakers in Missouri have pre-filed legislation that would allow mobile and retail wagering with digital platforms tethered to gambling boats. The bills are expected to be debated in the legislative season in early 2022. It will be the fifth time Missouri lawmakers will consider legal sports betting since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was overturned in May 2018.
Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Caldwell), Rep. Phil Christofanelli (R-St. Charles), Rep. Dan Shaul (R-Jefferson), and Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer (R-Buchanan) have either pre-filed sports gambling bills or say they will introduce legislation when the legislature convenes on January 5, 2022.
Hoskins, a Republican who represents central and western Missouri and who supported prior sportsbook bills, said he is confident that this time around, one sports betting bill will pass.
House Bill 1666, filed by Republican Christofanelli, is similar to one filed by Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden last year. That was among 10 filed for the 2021 session, but didn’t get a hearing. Christofanelli’s version sets the tax rate at 6.75 per cent and does not have a league data mandate, but it does allow for sports governing bodies to request that certain events or bet types be banned.
According to Christofanelli’s initiative, licensees would pay a $50,000 initial application fee and a total of $40,000 per year: $20,000 in administrative fees and $20,000 in renewal fees.
The Missouri Gaming Commission would regulate, and digital operators would be required to work with existing gambling boats to offer wagering. Gambling boats would be awarded facility licenses, and digital platforms would then have to apply for an interactive sports platform license and partner with a facility.
Meanwhile Shaul‘s bill proposes to tackle two areas: betting and video lottery.
Speaking to KSDK, he said: “We’ll take legalized betting and also the video lottery terminals and add those together and deal with both issues at one time.”
Shaul argues that people from Missouri are spending millions in other states because of the current illegality of sports betting.
He said: “We need to do something. People in Missouri want to be able to bet on sports.”
“The state of Missouri got $790m from the NFL last week Do you realize what we could be making on video lottery terminals and sports gaming? We could bring in $400m per year in taxes.”
