https://www.azcentral.com/story/new...sses-bill-legalize-betting-sports/7159280002/
[h=1]Legal sports betting could start by end of year in Arizona after Legislature approves wagering bill[/h]
[FONT="]Arizonans are closer to placing legal wagers on professional sports by the end of this year thanks to legislation that won final approval Monday in the state Senate.
[/FONT][FONT="]Gov. Doug Ducey is expected to sign the bill into law, legalizing sports and fantasy betting, as well as a new keno game run by the state lottery.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Lawmakers moved companion bills, Senate Bill 1797 and House Bill 2772 through their respective chambers, giving the final approval Monday evening to the House version, on a 23-6 vote, with one member not voting.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]With the passage of the legislation, Ducey also is expected to sign amendments to the gaming compacts with the state's tribes, allowing them to expand casinos and offer new games such as baccarat, craps and roulette. They only offer card games such as blackjack and poker today.
Ducey won the support of tribes in the state for off-reservation sports and fantasy betting in exchange for allowing them to expand, including an unspecified number of new casinos in metro Phoenix.
Lawmakers have privately reviewed details of the compact changes Ducey has negotiated, but the Governor's Office has only shared broad details with the public.
Ten professional sports teams and 10 tribes can acquire sports betting licenses under the bill. All can offer mobile betting. The off-reservation sportsbooks also can offer betting at sites within five blocks of their sports facilities.
The sports-betting license holders could contract with online wagering companies such as FanDuel Group or DraftKings.
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[FONT="]Betting on collegiate sports is allowed, but not proposition bets (bets on any aspect of a contest other than the final outcome or point spread).
[/FONT]
[FONT="][h=2]How much tax revenue will AZ receive?[/h][/FONT]
[FONT="]Sportsbooks would see an 8% tax rate on all revenue after subtracting payouts to gamblers. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee, which reviews new laws to estimate their financial impact, estimates all the new gambling under the law will bring the state about $34 million in new annual revenue, but warned that the estimate is based only on broad details in the bill and the experience of other states.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]States have steadily allowed sportsbooks in the wake of a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]For example, the JLBC predicts that the Department of Gaming will charge sportsbook operators $150,000 annually for their license, though that is not set in the law.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]The JLBC estimates sports betting alone will bring about $15 million in revenue to the state general fund, based on those fees and tax collections. The estimate is based on sports betting in Iowa, Indiana, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Under the bill, the Arizona Department of Gaming can license fantasy sports operators, who can take bets online. Gamblers can then select virtual teams made up of actual players in recognized sports and wager on them.
[/FONT]
[h=1]Legal sports betting could start by end of year in Arizona after Legislature approves wagering bill[/h]
[FONT="]Arizonans are closer to placing legal wagers on professional sports by the end of this year thanks to legislation that won final approval Monday in the state Senate.
[/FONT][FONT="]Gov. Doug Ducey is expected to sign the bill into law, legalizing sports and fantasy betting, as well as a new keno game run by the state lottery.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Lawmakers moved companion bills, Senate Bill 1797 and House Bill 2772 through their respective chambers, giving the final approval Monday evening to the House version, on a 23-6 vote, with one member not voting.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]With the passage of the legislation, Ducey also is expected to sign amendments to the gaming compacts with the state's tribes, allowing them to expand casinos and offer new games such as baccarat, craps and roulette. They only offer card games such as blackjack and poker today.
Ducey won the support of tribes in the state for off-reservation sports and fantasy betting in exchange for allowing them to expand, including an unspecified number of new casinos in metro Phoenix.
Lawmakers have privately reviewed details of the compact changes Ducey has negotiated, but the Governor's Office has only shared broad details with the public.
Ten professional sports teams and 10 tribes can acquire sports betting licenses under the bill. All can offer mobile betting. The off-reservation sportsbooks also can offer betting at sites within five blocks of their sports facilities.
The sports-betting license holders could contract with online wagering companies such as FanDuel Group or DraftKings.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Betting on collegiate sports is allowed, but not proposition bets (bets on any aspect of a contest other than the final outcome or point spread).
[/FONT]
[FONT="][h=2]How much tax revenue will AZ receive?[/h][/FONT]
[FONT="]Sportsbooks would see an 8% tax rate on all revenue after subtracting payouts to gamblers. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee, which reviews new laws to estimate their financial impact, estimates all the new gambling under the law will bring the state about $34 million in new annual revenue, but warned that the estimate is based only on broad details in the bill and the experience of other states.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]States have steadily allowed sportsbooks in the wake of a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]For example, the JLBC predicts that the Department of Gaming will charge sportsbook operators $150,000 annually for their license, though that is not set in the law.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]The JLBC estimates sports betting alone will bring about $15 million in revenue to the state general fund, based on those fees and tax collections. The estimate is based on sports betting in Iowa, Indiana, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Under the bill, the Arizona Department of Gaming can license fantasy sports operators, who can take bets online. Gamblers can then select virtual teams made up of actual players in recognized sports and wager on them.
[/FONT]
