Don’t expect to plop down a bet on your favorite ball team this year anywhere in California—at least legally.
Although lawmakers in the Golden State have been working feverishly to craft a bill since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal ban on sports betting, no one has reach a workable compromise with the legislative session coming up at the end of the month.
Rep. Adam Gray last month introduced a bill that would, if approved by a two-thirds majority of both the Assembly and Senate, refer an initiative to the voters to amend the state constitution that would allow bets on baseball, football and a variety of other sports.
However, the state’s gaming tribes are holding out for a continuation of their monopoly on all casino style games, which the voters gave them when they amended the constitution in 1999.
Steve Stallings, chairman of the California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) made that clear in a recent statement: “California voters have, on numerous occasions, confirmed the exclusive right of California tribal governments to operate casino-style games. Legalization of sports betting should not become a backdoor way to infringe upon exclusivity.”
Greg Sarris, tribal chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, which owns the Graton Resort and Casino in Northern California, offered this non-comment when asked recently, “It would be premature to comment on any potential opportunities within the state of California, as neither the tribe’s government nor the state has adopted or promulgated any legislation relating to sports betting.”
However, tribes are not given an exclusive right to operate all forms of gaming. The state has more than 90 card clubs as well as six racetracks, which are also lobbying to be given a piece of the action.
The daily fantasy sports sites FanDuel and DraftKings have also expressed a strong interest in sports betting. “This ruling gives us the ability to further diversify our product offerings,” declared DraftKings CEO Jason Robbins. The company has been developing a sports-betting platform for many months.
But these interest groups have nothing like the political influence and resources of the tribes, which generate almost $8 billion a year.
At first Gray’s bill looked like a possibility for putting the measure on the November ballot of this year. Now that appears highly unlikely.
According to Senator Bill Dodd, chairman of the Senate Governmental Organization committee, which oversee gaming issues, the bill remains in committee. The 2020 ballot seems more likely now, he said.
The state has a monetary incentive for legalizing sports wagering: a slice of the $150 billion that is bet illegally in the U.S., according to the American Gaming Association.
Dodd told the Sonoma Index-Tribune, “It’s happening. Bringing it out of the shadows could be way to reduce corruption, address problem gambling and provide a revenue stream.”
All states that are contemplating sports betting are also being lobbied by the four big professional sports leagues, the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA to include an “integrity fee,” which others call a royalty. So far, no state legislature has gone along, but NBA spokesman Mike Bass makes a forceful case.
Bass told the Index-Tribune, “As the intellectual property creators for this content, our games serve as the foundation for legalized sports betting, providing casinos the ability to earn revenue off our games, while we bear all of the risk that accompanies sports betting and will incur additional expenses to expand our existing compliance and enforcement programs.”
Major League Baseball said it hopes to develop “meaningful partnerships,” with state governments and operators and in a statement added, “We will use our expertise, rights and footprint to help the states that have smart and modern sports betting laws develop the country’s most successful betting markets within a regulatory framework that protects the integrity of our games, which is most paramount.”
