Montana legalises sports betting
Governor Steve Bullock signed a bill that has turned Montana into the latest state to legalise sports betting in the US.
US.- Sports betting continues to grow in the US after the revocation of PASPA and Montana has just joined. The state’s governor signed a bill into Law, opening Montana to sports betting.
The new regulations give the state lottery the power to oversee the segment. It will run through kiosks and mobile applications, expected to launch by fall.
The bill’s sponsor, Democratic Rep. Ryan Lynch, expects to launch sports betting before the football season begins. “It’s a good day for Montana to be able to see sports betting in the marketplace,” he said. “I think Montanans will enjoy the new aspect of watching sports for entertainment as well as betting on it.”
Montana Tavern Association executive director John Iverson celebrated the segment’s legalisation. “Extra cheeseburgers; extra slices of pizza, a few more people filling seats,” Iverson expects. “The actual revenue from the gaming isn’t going to be significant.”
Sports betting liberalisation
The US Supreme Court cleared states to legalise sports betting in May. They said that the federal law that was in place was unconstitutionally forcing states to maintain their prohibitions. As a result, the gambling industry got the green light to set regulations to find common ground on it.
The high court ruled that Congress overstepped its authority in 1992 by prohibiting states that didn’t already allow sports betting from entering the business. Due to a 7-2 vote in favour of overruling PASPA, the sports protection act that was passed 26 years ago.
