Sports betting legislation advanced in some states and stalled in others. Here are last week’s top developments.
Alabama is a state surrounded by states with legal lotteries, and sports betting. However, Alabama has been reluctant in efforts to legalize lottery, sports betting and other types of gambling so far. The last comprehensive gambling bill was voted down by a single vote last year. Sen. Greg Albritton is trying to bring in a new legislation this year, aimed at the legalization of gambling services, including lottery and online sports betting.
He revealed his plan last week, which included recommendations such as establishment of a state lottery, electronic gambling at the state’s greyhound tracks and legalized sports betting. The proposal also allows the Poarch Band of Creek Indians to build up to four casinos in the state. The plan proposes a 24% tax on the electronic gambling and sports betting revenue.
According to Albritton, he doesn’t have the votes needed to pass the bill however, he is unveiling his plans for everyone to see. Albritton believes that illegal sports gambling is rampant in the state, which if legalized can be a great source of income for the state. Speaking about illegal gambling, he said,
“We had sports gambling in that hallway (of the Alabama State Senate) before the Super Bowl. It’s occurring in junior highs. It’s eating us up. If we don’t get control of it, we’ll be in serious trouble.”
Albritton believes that the trimmed-down version of the last year’s bill could be acceptable to the constituents. The latest proposal matches last year’s bill except it does not call for allowing the construction of Casinos with table games in the state.
Hawaii is one of the few states without legal forms of gambling. Attempts to legalize online sports betting have failed in the past. Last week, a bill aiming to legalize sports betting in the state advanced one step further, giving hope to the state’s gambling supporters.
Rep. Dan Holt filed the House Bill 1308, which has been slowly but surely moving along through the legislature. The bill passed in the state’s House of Representatives last month with an overwhelming majority of 35-15. It has passed the Senate Ways and Means Committee review and is now moving forward to the full Senate floor.
Gov. Josh Green says that he is neutral on the idea of gambling, however, the opposition from senators is strong. House lawmakers against HB1308 raised major concerns about societal issues it may cause including gambling addiction. Rep. David Alcos expressed his opinion by saying that,
“There are a lot of bad things that follow [gaming authorization], from sex trafficking to stealing to all kinds of bad things. Do you want to see Hawaii be like Las Vegas?”
Adding to the uncertainty is the looming legislative session conclusion deadline of May 2nd. Which may not leave enough time for the bill to be voted in the Senate and then to be sent to the lower house for concurrence.
If the bill is passed, however, it will authorize up to four sportsbook licenses. The national sportsbooks DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and Fanatics will be front runners for those licenses. The companies are lobbying for this Bill to be passed.
Online Sports betting legalization efforts have hit a dead end in Mississippi. Senate Bill 2510 was filed by Sen. Joey Fillingane in March. The Bill was supposed to ban sweepstakes website in Mississippi by increasing the criminal violation for running a sweepstakes website from a misdemeanour to a felony. The bill was gaining momentum in the Senate and passed the Senate with unanimous vote.
Until Rep Casey Eure decided to include an amendment for legalizing online sports betting in the bill. This decision was fiercely opposed by the Senate Gaming Committee Chair David Blount, who put the onus on the Mississippi Gaming Commission to recommend this change. The commission didn’t do that, and the matter went to the special conference committee.
Last week, the conference announced that no mutual ground was achieved, and Senate Bill 2510 was now dead. Blount, who is also the vice chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus said,
“To link bills together when the topics are not related is not the way the legislature should work.”
This is a major blow to the proponents of online sports betting in the state who believe that the state is missing out on at least $25 Million a year in taxes on sports betting.
Sweepstakes operators will consider this a win, as this ensures their operations in the state for the foreseeable future. The Social & Promotional Games Association (SPGA) welcomed the events and reiterated that their operations are not in violation of the state’s laws.
Recent Posts
Dave Schwab 
April 6, 2025 
