Hawaii Senate Approves Sports Betting BillHouse Needs To Approve Senate Amendments, Then Heads To Gov. Josh Green's Desk |
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Hawaii stands out as one of only two U.S. states without any form of legal gambling, but that may be about to change.
This week, the state senate approved an online sports betting bill that would also legalize fantasy sports contests.
That comes after the House recently approved a similar measure. The bill now heads back to the House to iron out a few changes seen in the Senate and then awaits the signature of Gov. Josh Green.
“We need this revenue because of what we are facing in the state of Hawaii from this unprecedented disaster in Washington D.C.,” Sen. Angus McKelvey said in supporting the measure. “It’s not just the blatant up-front cuts, it’s the inflation. It’s the tariff wars. Screws, right now, have gone up 70%.”
Four Online Operators Could Come To The Aloha State
HB1308 would allow up to four online gaming operators in the state and set the tax rate at 10%. Operators would also pay a $250,000 licensing fee.
The bill initially included the Department of Consumer Protection as the body regulating the industry since the state doesn’t have a gaming commission. However, the Senate changed that after that department and officials with the Department of Consumer Protection both expressed reservations about regulating the industry.
Senators ultimately approved the Department of Law Enforcement to regulate sports betting operators. The department won’t have much time to prepare as the bill would go into effect on July 1.
Green has expressed his support for at least some forms of gaming to help fund the new Aloha Stadium project.
“That is the one way to immediately guarantee you could build an $800 million stadium, and it would be an attraction,” he recently told Hawaii News Now. “Again, some people will hesitate. All I can tell you is it’s on the rail, and people would have to go there to possibly lose their money, maybe make some money, but a lot of people find entertainment in that. I see a lot of local families going to Las Vegas and I would love for them to stay here when they can. That’s another consideration.”
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