“Casino Reports” Says Delaware Close to Legalized Sports Book

Since Gov. Minner is leaving office, the sports betting industry is once again making a big push to get sports book legalized in Delaware. Expect legislation to be offered to Gov. Markell VERY early in his term.

Estimating the benefits
From Casino Reports:

Sports betting is sure to bring extra revenue to the Delaware state coffers, although there is debate over exactly how much the figure would be.

A recent report by the state’s gaming industry said sports betting could bring in as much as $71 million. A Governor’s Task Force Report gave a more modest total, estimating an additional $22.5 million to $30.6 in the first year.

One this is for certain – the close proximity of Delaware to the large population centers of neighboring New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland, means it is more than just Delaware residents who are waiting to see what happens.

It will be interesting to see how New Jersey reacts to this. We have seen that horse track gambling has prodded Pennsylvania to adopt casino legalization. Only Delaware, Montana, Nevada, and Oregon were grandfathered by the Federal Laws on gambling. That puts Delaware in a unique position on the East Coast.

The slot machine halls associated with the horse tracks in Delaware are illegal per our constitution, but the constitution is ignored in this case in favor of revenue. They are called Video Lottery machines as a way to get around the limitations written into our constitution.

Online betting is illegal in the USA and the government is only now realizing how difficult it is to stop. Since they cannot stop it and they would love to tax it, I expect online betting to get federal sanction in the near future. If that happens, it will be interesting to see what happens to Delaware gambling revenue.

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