The Ohio House was not on board with Gov. Mike DeWine’s plan to double the tax rate from 10% to 20% but the new Senate version of the state budget has put that measure back into play.
The House version of the budget passed in late April with largely bipartisan support. The $86 billion version of the budget put forth by the Senate amounts to $86 billion annually and includes a number of more controversial measures than just sports betting taxation.
The Senate bill passed 24-7 with absolutely no Democrats supporting the measure.
Dems offered no floor amendments to the measure, which included provisions about DEI training in schools, TikTok on state devices, and income tax reductions, among other things.
Now, the two chambers will head to conference committee to hash out a negotiated budget. The group has until June 30 before it has to head to DeWine’s desk for his signature.
With almost $450 million in taxable sports betting revenue since it launched in Ohio on Jan. 1, the state has collected over $45 million in revenue so far.
In other states like New York, operators have pushed back at the viability of aggressive tax schemes. Granted, in New York operators are paying 51%, which is hampering their ability to offer competitive promos.
The change would put Ohio on the higher side of the sports betting tax rate spectrum and directly in line with Massachusetts.
