Sports betting bill cleared in Tennessee

The House has approved a sports betting bill and sent it to the Senate to be further discussed.

US.- Sports betting could soon be a reality in Tennessee as a bill was cleared by the House and passed a significant hurdle. The legislative piece was later sent to the Senate, where a panel advanced the proposal to an upcoming floor vote.

The legislation passed with 58 votes in favour, while 37 officials voted against it. It would allow and regulate mobile and interactive sports betting for people at least 21 years old and older. The piece establishes that brick-and-mortar betting locations would be banned.

The bill was then sent to a Senate panel, which advanced it towards an upcoming floor vote. If approved, it would be sent to Governor Bill Lee, who has historically opposed the expansion of gambling in the state. However, Republican House Speaker Glen Casada, who voted for the bill, said he doesn’t expect that the governor would veto it.

“It’s something that is currently being done by an overwhelming number of citizens in the state, so at least this way there’s some regulation and some oversight into it, versus right now, it’s done without those things,” Casada told reporters.