A coalition of gaming tribes in California say they have submitted enough signatures to qualify a sports betting initiative for the 2022 ballot. But it could happen sooner.
Another petition to recall Governor Gavin Newsom has gathered more than 2 million signatures. If the Secretary of State validates 1.5 million, an election will be held by the end of this year. That could mean other measures, like the tribal sports betting measure, could be on the same ballot.
If enacted by voters, the measure would legalize sports betting at tribal casinos and racetracks; a deliberate omission leaves out the 60 or more commercial card clubs in the state.
The tribes have gathered nearly 1.5 million signatures, and only need 1 million to qualify for the ballot, which will be announced this week.
Sports wagers, however, would also be limited to retail locations inside brick-and-mortar casinos. This removes the mobile element that has turned out to be the most profitable aspect for sports betting for the states that have adopted it. The tribes say this is an interim step until they’re ready to go into mobile sportsbooks.
“Moving into the online/mobile space immediately could have disadvantages for a lot of tribes who can’t find a partner in the space,” said James Siva, chairman of the California Nations Indian Gaming Association. He said online sports betting in the Golden State could take five to 10 years to achieve. “The initial phase of brick-and-mortar-only will help tribes to figure out the best way to engage with this and find the best partners.”
The state has more than 100 gaming tribes, he said, and there simply aren’t enough sports betting partners to go around. The lack of mobile betting will frustrate some Golden State lawmakers—and definitely members of the industry who want to tap into what could be the largest sports betting market in the nation. But political observers recognize that no solution without the tribes is possible.
Victor Rocha, conference chairman of the National Indian Gaming Association and a member of the Pechanga tribe, said, “The tribes have exclusivity for gaming and no intention of giving that up. We can wait it out. Look at iPoker. If it becomes adversarial, nobody wins. If people try to push it before then, we have historical evidence to show they are going to have a really tough time.”
There have been several attempts in the legislature to reach a consensus on sports betting since 2018, when the Supreme Court lifted the federal ban on such wagers in the U.S. However, basic disagreements between the gaming tribes on the best approach kept any proposal from making it to the floor for a vote.
Advocates of online sports betting—professional teams and leagues, card rooms and others—point to the recent compact in Arizona where tribes got several concessions to permit sports betting to be conducted off reservation land. A competing petition that would permit a full slate of sports betting option is being considered.
