Days after a Mississippi bill to legalize mobile sports betting was advanced out of committee, it was approved by the full state house on Monday, Feb. 3.
HB 1302, the new version of Rep. Casey Eure’s Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act, would authorize online sports wagering but restrict it to existing casino licensees. Each of the state’s 26 casinos would be able to partner with up to two digital sportsbooks each.
Sports betting would be taxed at 12% of annual gross revenue under the proposal. The market would launch in December 2025.
Last week, it progressed through the House Gaming Committee, which Eure chairs. On Monday, it passed in the full chamber with an 88-10 vote despite facing opposition from House Minority Leader Rep. Robert Johnson.
It now needs to gather the same head of steam and the same approval in the Senate Gaming Committee which is chaired by mobile sports betting opponent Sen. David Blount.
Mississippi has been here before
Both Mississippi’s House and Eure have been here before. Last year, the representative’s HB 774 was approved by the House but was hit with a strike-all amendment in the Senate and ultimately died in conference committee when lawmakers disagreed on a final proposal.
Both Johnson and Blount opposed last year’s effort. Blount has gone on record saying that while current retail gaming in Mississippi boosts tourism, encourages investment in amenities and supports thousands of jobs, mobile sports betting would not necessarily contribute to any of those goals.
This year’s version includes provisions to try to make the bill more appealing to the existing casino industry. That includes a unique twist which Eure said is designed to protect all existing retail casinos: a proposed Retail Sports Wagering Protection Fund would hold the first $6 million in annual sports betting tax revenue.
Smaller casinos would be eligible to draw money from the protection fund for the first five years after online betting becomes legal and the Mississippi Gaming Commission would allocate the funds proportionately among the eligible casinos. The rest of the tax revenue would go towards the state’s Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund.
Eure has cited figures suggesting that Mississippi is losing out on between $40 million and $80 million per year by not allowing online sports betting.
Mississippi has multiple sports betting bills in play in the House right now. Rep. Cedric Burnett’s HB 682 was introduced earlier in January and is pending in committee. That bill would allow online sportsbooks to be run by existing casinos or licensed sportsbooks, proposes a lower tax rate of 8% and would take effect on July 1.