Ga Sports Betting

Another state is looking to bring in some sports betting tax revenue in 2021. In a filing to the state legislatures, Georgia Republican Ron Stephens and five other co-sponsors are attempting to push forward sports betting in the Peach State.

The proposed bill would give sports bettors six online-only sportsbooks with remote registration. The model that Georgia would institute will be similar to Tennessee. Tennessee adopted an online-only sports betting model, and the Tennessee Education Lottery oversees sports betting in the state.

The House Tourism and Economic Development Committee voted 26-0 Tuesday to pass legislation sponsored by its chairman, state Rep. The bill would authorize the Georgia Lottery to manage an online sports wagering system, and sports betting companies would pay a 14% tax on their income. Georgia senator files bill that would legalize sports betting A Republican senator filed legislation that would legalize online sports betting in Georgia, aiming to expand gambling through the. Georgia lawmakers have contemplated expanded gambling and hospitality industries inclusive of casinos for more than a decade, making the issue somewhat stale, but sports betting has been all the rage since 2018 — more than 25 U.S. Jurisdictions have legalized in two-and-a-half years. Georgia Sports Betting History; Year Info; 2000: Due to a loophole, Georgia sees an influx of video poker machines. 2002: A law is passed banning all video poker machines in the state. Georgia online sports betting is also illegal. The state has a long-standing, anti-gambling view. However, this is changing. As of late, the legislative council has been considering the value of online sports betting.

In Georgia, plenty of sportsbooks will look to gain access to the 10 million people that inhabit the Peach State. Each one will be vying for a license as many states in the south have yet to hop on the sports betting bandwagon.

Georgia Sports Betting Could Gain Traffic From Florida And Other Neighbors

Georgia is uniquely placed within the country. According to a fact sheet from the Hartsfield-Jackson, Atlanta airport, they are located within a two-hour plane ride from80% of the US population. The Atlanta airport is home to 150 US destinations and more than 75 foreign destinations in 50 countries.

Garnering interest from sports bettors who are waiting for flights is not the only point of interest for the state. Most of the southern states in the US have resisted online sports betting to this point. In fact, only Tennessee has opted to legalize sports betting in that area.

Florida is looking to right this wrong as they are attempting to legalize sports betting. However, there are legal hoops to jump through in order for that bill to hit the governor’s desk.

Ideally, Georgia will be able to use its location to bring in clients who may or may not be traveling. Furthermore, its proximity to Florida, a state with a massive population, could bring in additional revenue.

Does The Bill Have A Chance?

The bill proposed would include a $900,000 annual fee. This would be paid by the sportsbook to the state on a yearly basis. There is also a $50,000 license application fee to all sportsbooks who are applying for the license.

Moreover, Georgia would make a 16% tax revenue on adjusted gross sports wagering income. These are massive numbers for the state so it should definitely make legislatures happy.

However, there was a similar bill that failed last year. The bill got approved by the House but was rejected by the Senate.

The expectation is that this bill will get through the House, whether it progresses through the Senate and onto the governor’s desk is yet to be seen.

The latest attempt to legalize sports betting in Georgia from Rep. Ron Stephens could prove less is more when it comes to legalizing gambling.

Stephens and five other co-sponsors filed HB 86, which would legalize sports betting through the Georgia Lottery.

Stephens attempted to legalize sports betting last year through HR 378, but it might have been a bit ambitious. The referendum asked for the creation of a gaming commission and approval for all gambling the commission could oversee.

That attempt, and another Stephens called his “Hail Mary“ for GA sports betting late in the last session, both failed. One source involved in the process expressed confidence to LSR that the bill has a better chance than last year’s

Georgia sports betting bill details

HB 86 is a straight-forward sports betting bill that would legalize six online-only sportsbooks with remote registration.

Ga Sports Betting News

The lottery could license fewer than six if there aren’t enough applicants, though that shouldn’t be an issue. Outside of Tennessee to Georgia’s north, Southern states have mostly been left out of the sports betting legalization wave.

That means legal online sportsbooks in Georgia could draw traffic from its other border states of Alabama, South Carolina and, most importantly, Florida.

The bill taxes sports betting revenue at 16%. Sportsbook operators would also pay $900,000 annually to retain its license after a $50,000 application fee.

Problem gambling proposal but no funding

The bill addresses the need for problem gambling services in the state but might not go far enough.

Georgia’s Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities would work with local and national problem gambling organizations. The department would “establish prevention initiatives to reduce the number of individuals with problem gambling or a gambling disorder.”

There’s one problem, though: there’s no funding for such a program in the bill. All tax revenue from lottery operations go toward education in Georgia and sports betting would be no exception:

All of the tax collected under this Code section shall be distributed by the corporation to the general fund of the state treasury for deposit into the Lottery for Education Account established pursuant to Code Section 50-27-13.

Leagues get a piece of GA sports betting too

The major US sports leagues have had their lobbyists busy in all states to get a piece of the sports betting pie. Based on this bill ,it looks like Georgia is no different.

HB 86 would require sportsbooks to use official league data to settle in-play bets. There’s also another interesting nugget for the leagues:

Ga Sports Betting Games

Any sports governing body on whose sporting event the corporation has authorized wagering may also enter into commercial agreements with sports wagering operators or other entities that provide for such sports governing body to share in the amount bet from sports wagering on sporting events of such sports governing body. A sports governing body shall not be required to obtain a license or any other approval from the corporation to enter into such commercial agreements.

Ga Sports Betting Rules

Why sportsbooks would willingly choose to give the leagues an integrity feeisn’t clear. In any case, it’s optional.

Ga Sports Betting Sites

It’s worth noting all four of Georgia’s professional sports teams called for legal sports betting last year after creating the Georgia Professional Sports Integrity Alliance.