A proposal in Hawaii to legalize online sports betting and daily fantasy contests received strong committee approval in both the House and the Senate in recent days, but there is still quite a way to go for the effort.
On Jan. 31, the House Committee on Economic Development and Technology recommended passage Rep. Daniel Holt’s HB 1308 by a 6-0 vote, with one member not voting. The bill was recommended with slight amendments, mostly concerning privacy and data gathering.
Four days later, the Senate Economic Development and Tourism committee approved the Senate version, SB 1569, by a unanimous vote of 5-0.
The bills would legalize both sports betting and fantasy sports under the regulatory oversight of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, effective July 1, 2025. A minimum of four online sports betting platforms would be allowed to do business and would be taxed at 10%. Fantasy sports would be legalized under their own vertical.
Sportsbooks, workers point to opportunity
The committees heard from numerous witnesses in support, including Hawaii workers’ unions, who argued that bringing money from existing illegal gambling under state control would help to diversify the economy and support education and other community initiatives.
The Sports Betting Alliance (SBA) and its members BetMGM and DraftKings also spoke in favor. BetMGM’s Director of Government Affairs Jeremy Limun opined that illegal sportsbooks, as well as social casinos and sweepstakes operators, are capitalizing due to the lack of regulation. “Hawaii has a chance to fix this,” he told the House committee.
HB 1308’s co-sponsor, Rep. Chris Todd, added before the vote that people, “are generally speaking very good at understanding what potential negative outcomes may arise from legalization but very bad at recognizing the current negative outcomes of prohibition.” At the vote, House Republican Minority Leader Lauren Matsumoto changed her vote from a no to a yes, with reservations.
Boyd Gaming stands opposed
While the proposals received support from sportsbooks looking to get in on the act in Hawaii, Boyd Gaming is not so keen. The casino operators’ properties in Las Vegas are popular with Hawaiian tourists and the company owns and operates Vacations Hawaii, which provides vacation packages from the Aloha State to the strip.
In its testimony, Boyd questioned whether sports betting legalization would have the revenue-creation impact that is desired, and suggested that, “many other states in comparable-sized markets to Hawaii that have passed isolated sports wagering legislation have been disappointed in the outcome.”
The Hawaii Department of the Attorney General and the City of Honolulu also opposed the measure, mostly citing concerns over problem gambling and other societal impacts.
After the green light, the House version of the bill moves to the House Judiciary & Hawaiian Affairs Committee.
No movement on other HI gaming bills yet
As well as these companion bills, several other pieces of gaming expansion legislation are being considered in Hawaii.
A separate Senate bill introduced by SB 1569 co-sponsor Sen. Kim Decoite would legalize both retail and online sports betting but not fantasy sports. Meanwhile, Sen. Ron Kouchi’s SB 1507 would establish the Hawaii Lottery and Gaming Corporation and allow it to offer online casino games and poker, but not sports betting. Yet another proposal, SB 373, would legalize fantasy sports as a standalone measure.
