Regulators in Iowa say the state’s casinos are anxious to begin live sports betting in the state—which was approved last month—by August ahead of the NFL season.
“The industry is requesting a pretty aggressive timetable to have things implemented by August,” Brian Ohorilko, director of gaming at the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, said at a hearing of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission. “We’re doing everything we can to do that, but making sure that we’re doing it the right way.”
Three casinos received conditional approval for building sportsbooks at the meeting including the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sioux City, Grand Falls Casino & Golf Resort near Larchwood and Lakeside Casino near Osceola. They are the first facilities to get approval from the commission for sportsbook construction projects.
However, the state has not issued any sports betting licenses to the 19 casinos eligible for sportsbooks. Officials said they are still working on regulations for sports betting within the context of the bill the legislature approved in May. The commission’s permission is required to make material changes to any of them.
The commission hopes to finalize the regulations by July.
The state has also legalized online sports betting, but those approvals and licensing are expected to stretch into 2020.
Iowa casinos will pay 7.5 percent effective tax rate on both retail and online/mobile sports betting revenue. There is no “official league data” mandate in the state.
The Hard Rock’s $895,000 plans include converting 400 square feet of the 8,000 SF high stakes gaming space into a sport betting lounge with four betting windows.
Grand Falls plans to begin remodeling a space that is currently being used for musical acts. The renovation is part of a $10 million expansion that will include more hotel rooms and an enlarged RV park. The musical entertainment will be moved to another space near the casino’s central bar.
Since the law was signed last month the commission has been working to finalize rules for sports betting aiming at a mid-August rollout, according to Administrator Brian Ohorilko. The rules will be posted online by July, he said. Then the public will get a chance to weigh in on them at a public hearing.
“The industry is requesting a pretty aggressive timetable to have things implemented by August,” he told the commission. “We’re doing everything we can to do that, but making sure that we’re doing it the right way.”
The commission could take action at a special July 30 meeting, he said.
The casinos must pass extensive background checks before they will be granted sports betting licenses, he said.
Also at last week’s meeting the commission approved of the Elite Casino Resort LLC’s request for Betworks LLC to provide it sports book services at its three Iowa casinos. It also approved Bally Gaming to provide similar services for the Horseshoe Casino in Council Bluffs.
The state’s new law allows wagers on professional and college sports and daily fantasy sports sites. It does not allow in-game bets on college teams located within the state.
