Kentucky Sports Betting Bill Has Rep. Adam Koenig Hopeful But Frustrated

Few people need sports betting legalized inward Kentucky to a greater extent than tell Rep. hug drug Koenig. The Erlanger Republican River has filed bills since 2019 calling for just that.

Another Federal Reserve note is in the works for the 2022 General Assembly session, which started on Tuesday. But piece there’s hope, there’s also some frustration, too. That was evident as he spoke with Casino.org from his legislative office staff on Mon night, just hours before the young session began.

I don’t understand wherefore it hasn’t passed yet,” he said. “So, there’s reasons for hope. But my expectations are non richly because I’ve been burned-over before.”

Two years ago, Koenig’s bill passed unanimously inward the House Licensing, Occupations, and Administrative Regulations Committee, which he chairs. It passed in the arcsecond calendar week of the 60-day session and went to the House floor, with 41 of Koenig’s 99 colleagues inward the chamber co-sponsoring it.

There, it withered on the vine, as opponents of expanded gaming filed legion(p) amendments to the bill. Two months later, toward the oddment of the session, the eyeshade went rearward to the committee, ending its hopes.

A sports betting government note was filed during shoemaker's last year’s 30-day unawares session. However, the legislature’s gaming focalize zeroed inward on ensuring historical gymnastic horse racing (HHR) was legalized. That’s after the land Supreme Margaret Court issued an ruling saying the Bluegrass State Horse Racing Commission did non feature the sanction to create a new pari-mutuel game. The racing industry pushed for the lawmaking because revenue from the slots-like HHR machines has helped revitalize gymnastic horse and rein in racing inwards the state.

Surrounded By Legal Sports Betting States

As the KY General Assembly convenes, it comes as another of Kentucky’s neighboring states has just now signed sour on legalizing sports betting.

Ohio lawmakers passed their Federal Reserve note last month and Gov. Mike DeWine signed it into law. With it, Buckeye State became the 33rd commonwealth to tolerate sports betting and, for all practical purposes, assign Bluegrass State on an island encircled past sports betting states.

Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Mae West Virginia, Virginia, and Volunteer State all reserve sports betting – or inwards Ohio’s case, testament set aside it later this year. All of them grant statewide nomadic betting. Missouri River is the only if body politic bordering Bluegrass State that doesn’t set aside it, but there’s no bridgework to let from Bluegrass State to Missouri. You feature to take through and through Land of Lincoln or take a Magnolia State River ferryboat to catch to the Show-Me State.

Kentucky’s Loss is Indiana’s Gain

And operators in those states are more than well-chosen to receive Bluegrass State bettors.

Last month, at the 47th Annual Global Symposium on Racing at the University of Arizona, Hoosier State Grand Vice President and General Manager of Racing Eric Halstrom talked around the success of its off-track betting parlour in Clarksville, Ind.

The Winner’s Circle OTB is set inwards a small undress mall that doesn’t even face the street. However, it’s only 2 miles north of the Buckeye State River and simply away the interstate.

It’s “a polishing star,” he said, and IN Gaming Commission revenue information shows why.

According to the IGC’s November revenue report, the Clarksville OTB reported a handgrip of $3.9 one thousand thousand and generated revenues of $796,079. The handle ranked quaternary among the 14 brick-and-mortar sportsbook locations inwards the state, and it also outperformed some wandering apps, including theScore.bet and TwinSpires.

Of the 26 nomadic and retail entities, only when five had a greater unofficial keep than Clarksville’s 20.5 percent.

Kentucky does not experience sports wagering, and i trust (they) ne'er catch it… People are coming on that point from KY and they’re betting on sports, but they’re also betting on the races if you throw them a chance,” Halstrom told the audience at the symposium.

Political Challenge Awaits

Koenig, who has said a sports betting government note would make pass if it were lay on a private ballot, is not the only when lawmaker who in public supports it. Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer, R-Georgetown, said shoemaker's last weekend on WKYT’s KY Newsmakers that “it’s just now a innate(p) extension” to pari-mutuel gymnastic horse racing, which has been effectual inwards the province for more than a century.

But Thayer pointed to the opponent the account faces from fervent spiritual conservatives representing rural districts as a major obstacle.

“I believe we should pass on it,” Thayer said. “I trust we put up passing game it this year, but don’t cognise that we will. Sometimes, i feel the like we’ll live one of the utmost states to notch it.”

Religious conservatives relieve oneself upwardly a major parting of the legislature inward both chambers. Republicans also support large majorities inwards both.

There are 100 seats inward the House, and Republicans now sustain 75 of those. They have 30 of the 38 Senate seats. If you go away past the Hastert Rule, and so you’d need a minimum of 38 GOP House members and 15 of the Republican senators in arrears the bill. Going endorse to 2020, when the Republicans held 62 seats, Democrats made up 30 of the bill’s 41 cosponsors. In the Nov 2020 election, 10 of those Democrats either chose non to unravel once again or missed re-election.

What may also offend sports betting’s chances inwards the legislative assembly is that Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear supports expanded gaming. It was a major portion of his political platform when he eeked out a victory over then-incumbent Matt Bevin in 2019.

Not surprisingly, the human relationship between Beshear and the strong GOP legislative assembly has non been great. Case in point, tradition calls for the regulator to render his budget call before lawmakers Indian file the outlay billhook inwards the House. Beshear is place to present his budget reference next Thursday.

House Republicans filed their budget billhook on Friday, half a dozen days before the scheduled speech.

What’s Likely inward the Bill

His frustrations aside, Koenig told Casino.org he’s looking frontwards to filing the bill. He thinks, though, it testament follow a small later inward the session. The world-class week of the session has focussed on finalizing young legislative districts for upcoming elections.

The General Assembly is scheduled to break up inwards mid-April. The lowest mean solar day to file away a account inwards the House is Feb. 25.

Previous versions of Koenig’s sports betting peak experience included provisions for online poker and fantasise sports. The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission would regularise sports betting. He’s non expecting major changes to his proposal.

Those bills hold called for race tracks to offer up retail and wandering sports betting, with 144 revenue taxed at 9.75 percent for retail bets and 14.25 percent for online wagers. On the retail side, an additional .5 percent revenue enhancement would go game to racing developing funds.

Under that taxation plan, proponents believe the commonwealth tin can generate more than $20 jillion yearly inwards revenue.

There has also been a purvey for professional person sports venues holding at least 50,000 people to capture a license. That allowed the KY Speedway to act on a license. However, the auto data track has not held a NASCAR race since 2020. Koenig said that will likely need to follow addressed inward a young bill.

Past bills go down the certify fee at $500,000 and annual renewals at $50,000. Those proposals have also go under the minimum age at 18 years old, and required an 18-month in-person enrolment full stop for a mobile account. That agency inward order to wager on a mobile application, a wagerer would for the first time demand to physically tour to the cart track partnering with the nomadic app they indirect request to use, and present cogent evidence they are of eld to bet.