Unsurprisingly, for the second consecutive year, two iGaming bills failed to move forward in the Indiana House. The Public Policy Committee did not act on HB 1337 or HB 1356 before January 31, the last day of third readings. That means it was necessary for the bills, filed on January 11, to move out of committee by February 1. However, a spokesperson for state Rep. Alan Morrison, sponsor of HB 1337, said some form of iGaming still could be approved before the legislative session adjourns in March.
“Those bills did not pass their committee by the deadline. However, language from those bills could potentially appear in other bills still going through the legislative process. So, there’s still a chance they could become law in some form,” the spokesperson stated.
Both bills would have allowed licensed owners of riverboat casinos, operators of a riverboat in a historic hotel district and racino license holders to offer online, interactive gaming. Both also would have set a tax rate of 18 percent and shared revenue with operators and host cities and counties. Morrison’s measure also proposed expanding the Indiana Gaming Commission from seven members to nine.
HB 1356, authored by state Reps. Doug Gutwein and Ethan Manning had the support of the iDevelopment and Economic Association, which said the bill could generate $500 million in taxes for the state in the next five years.
The unsuccessful legislation comes 18 months after the launch of Indiana sports betting at a casino or racino. Lawmakers also failed to pass iGaming bills last year.
Observers said the bills were not expected to move out of committee since it’s an election year for state lawmakers. Also, the state is on solid ground financially so legislators felt little pressure to generate additional tax revenue by advancing an iGaming bill.
