Efforts to authorise sports wagering in the Missouri hit a brick wall on Wednesday as proponents of video lottery terminals (VLT) sought to introduce a number of poison pill amendments to the bill.
Senate Bill 30 – which has the support of both casinos and major professional sports teams – seeks to legalise sports wagering in Missouri.
All of the state’s neighbours have either authorised sports betting, or are in the process of doing so. Last week, the Kentucky governor, Andy Beshear, signed House Bill 551 into law, paving the way for state-wide sports betting, and making Missouri one of the final states in the region to legalise the activity.
The proposed law – introduced by Senator Tony Luetkemeyer – is the companion bill to House Bill 556, which was sponsored by a bi-partisan coalition of Republicans and Democrats.
The legislation would allow each licensed casino in the state to partner with three skins, up to a total of six per casino company.
Additionally, each major sports team will be able to partner with a mobile operator, with the team granted an exclusion area around their grounds where they are to be the only online platform authorised to advertise.
The tax rate was initially set at 10% of gross gaming revenue, with the application fee set no higher than $100,000 for casino-tethered licenses and $150,000 for sports team-linked ones. The Missouri Gaming Commission is to be given regulatory authority over the activity.
