California leads the nation in many things. One of the things it does not lead in is sports betting. It is one of 19 states that doesn’t have a sports wagering bill active in the legislature.
Last week a proposed ballot measure that would have amended the stated constitution to allow sports betting in the Golden State did not gather enough signatures to move forward. More accurately, it didn’t attract the wealthy donors needed to fund signature gathering.
“We never advanced to get a single signature,” Russell Lowery, a consultant for Californians for Sports Betting told Legal Sports Report. “It started a conversation in California gaming on what is the right path forward, and those conversations will continue until they figure out the puzzle.” In June the group filed to begin gathering signatures.
The hoped-for wealthy donors said they were waiting for the legislature to act. Which it has not yet done. Many of those donors have shifted their efforts to others states that seem more likely to get legislation reported the San Diego Union Tribune.
It goes without saying that the state’s gaming tribes didn’t support the measure because they argue that they should have a monopoly on casino gaming. And their opposition would have meant millions of dollars in ads fighting it if it had made it to the ballot.
The Washington Examiner quoted Steve Stallings, chairman of California Nations Indian Gaming Association, “We feel like protecting the industry in California is more important.”
“The difference between June and today is everyone understands it’s not going to happen legislatively without some sort of pressure from an initiative. In the cardroom and sports betting industry, I think everyone now understands that if it’s going to happen, it’s going to be through an initiative,” said Lowery.
The measure would have allowed sports book in tribal casinos and card clubs. It was notable for not offerings any tax benefits to the state or local government.
However, that fits in with the trend in the state. Despite having the largest concentration of Indian gaming in the country, tribal casinos don’t pay large shares of their winnings to the state government. Not for lack of trying. Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger loudly tried to tap a larger share through amendments to existing tribal state gaming compacts, only to have his efforts shot down in federal court.
The state’s Legislative Analyst’s Office reported that the $330 million a year tribes once paid to the General Fund in 2016 had shrunk to $3.6 million. Most of the compacts that followed legalization of tribal gaming in 2000 are coming up for renegotiation with the current Governor Gavin Newsom.
When the California Lottery was authorized by the voters in 1984 it was sold as a major way to fund the state’s schools. Today it provides about 1 percent of the education budget.
Recently the legislature held a hearing on gaming in the state, where Senator Ben Allen said, “One of the challenges that we have in government sometimes is when programs are oversold, it kind of produces disappointment.”
Lawmakers and others might be more energetic about trying to squeeze more money from various forms of gaming if the existing tax structure was not producing a record amount of revenue.
