Ohio already has an online casino bill in play in the Senate, and the House Finance Committee chair has now filed his own proposal, with an emphasis on looking after existing casinos.
Rep. Brian Stewart‘s House Bill 298, filed on May 20, would make online casino gambling legal in the state, with a launch date of no later than March 31, 2026.
However, the bill would impose a number of limitations on a potential market in the Buckeye State. Most notably, only companies that currently operate bricks-and-mortar casinos and racinos in the state would be eligible for an online license. Operators who have no existing retail presence in the state would not.
Each licensee company would only be allowed to use one online gambling platform, even if they have multiple properties within the state. So, for example, the likes of Caesars and PENN Entertainment would have to choose just one of their multiple online casino brands.
In a framework that seems designed to protect land-based casino gaming, another provision would ban promotional gaming credits specific to online gambling, but allow them for hospitality experiences or free play at land-based casinos.
Bill would tax online casino at 28%
Licensees would pay $50 million for an initial five-year license and $10 million every year for renewal.
The bill would tax online casino at 28%, putting it in line with Michigan’s tax rate. That would be higher than the 20% levy currently imposed on online sports betting.
Stewart estimates this tax rate could generate $400-$800 million annually in new revenue for the state, 99% of which would go into the state general fund. The other 1% would be dedicated to problem gambling resources and supports.
The Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) would oversee the market, as it does with online sports wagering.
Sweepstakes explicitly banned
Meanwhile, the bill also addresses online sweepstakes in clear language.
While some of the swathes of legislation aimed at tackling that vertical beats around the bush, Stewart’s bill namechecks them directly on numerous occasions and clarifies that online sweepstakes that use a dual-currency system and simulate gambling would be expressly illegal unless specifically authorized.
Operating such sweeps would be a criminal offense.
House bill follows Senate proposal
Stewart revealed a few weeks ago that he was working on his own piece of online casino legislation with the aim of generating revenue for the state, a statement he made after Stewart’s House version of the budget stripped out Gov. Mike DeWine’s plan to double the sports betting tax rate from 20% to 40%.
He has now filed the bill after a separate proposal was introduced in the Senate.
Sen. Nathan Manning‘s SB 197 would allow outside operators to enter the market, but would charge them a higher tax rate,
Existing brick-and-mortar casinos who use an online casino platform that they own at least half of, such as Caesars and PENN, would be taxed at 36% and pay $50 million for a five-year license fee, with a $5 million renewal fee. Untethered license-holders who use a third-party platform would have to pay twice as much for a license and would be taxed at 40%.
That Senate bill has been referred to committee and is set to be discussed this week.
