Kansas state senators will review a House-approved bill legalizing sports betting when they return for a veto session April 25. The Senate approved the measure last year. The bill would allow online and retail sports wagering. The state’s four casinos each would receive three skins and could request an additional online skin in partnership with a major league sports team; in Kansas that would be Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer. The casinos also could partner with up to 50 retailers.
The measure also calls for a 10 percent tax on sports wagering revenue, which some legislators said should be re-evaluated in light of the Kansas City Chiefs possibly moving to Kansas. In fact, a last-minute amendment was added to the House bill to set aside 80 percent of sports betting tax revenue for a new Attracting Professional Sports in Kansas fund.
Now Kansas and Missouri lawmakers have passed sports betting bills in one chamber. Both states are anxious to be the first to legalize sports wagering. Regarding the Chiefs, Missouri Governor Mike Parson previously said the state will fight to keep the team. A team official said it’s considering renovating Arrowhead Stadium.
Political Analyst Dr. Bob Beatty said, “In the end, sports teams do end up going with whoever has the best offer. The mood right now is it’s very possible Kansas could land a new Chiefs stadium on the Kansas side.”
Governor Laura Kelly has said she wants sports betting in the state and would sign the bill when it arrives on her desk.
Meanwhile in Missouri the tax rate is a hot topic. Following a recent hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Chairman Dan Hegeman indicated he wanted the tax rate on sports betting to be higher than 8 percent, which is the rate the House approved. He noted the legislation started with a 10 percent tax and some Senate bills have set it at 21 percent, including the measure sponsored by state Senator Denny Hoskins.
Hoskins said at that rate, which is what the state’s casinos pay on net profits, the state would gain $153 million in annual sports wagering tax revenue. He pointed out the House bill, which includes deductions for promotional costs, would generate $10 million annually. “In my bill, the state would get the difference. In the House bill, the casinos would get the difference,” Hoskins said.
The House sports betting bill was drafted after negotiations between Missouri’s major professional sports franchises and the licensed casino companies. It would allow Missouri residents to place mobile or online bets on the outcome of games and performances of individual players. Prop bets would not be allowed.
Bill DeWitt III, president of Major League Baseball’s St. Louis Cardinals, said, “We need a fair tax rate that will produce revenue both for the industry and the state.”
The bill also would set aside $500,000 for the state fund that provides problem gambling services. State Senator Dan Houx told the committee the bill would promote awareness about problem gambling and the self-exclusion program allowing gamblers to ban themselves from access to casinos and online wagering. Houx said casinos and vendors providing betting apps would be required to submit a plan for addressing problem gambling.
Hoskins disputed the effectiveness of the provision, since the House bill would allow people to gamble through their smartphones, computers or smart televisions at home. Hoskins said some states spend millions on problem gambling services. “All accounts say we are underfunded in our problem gambling fund at $250,000 without sportsbooks,” he said.
The bill would allow wagering on college and pro sports and would require gaming platforms to use official league data for settling bets. Each of Missouri’s six licensed casino operators could offer three skins, with each casino company capped at a total of six; that would include Penn National and Caesars Entertainment which each operate three Missouri casinos.
One skin each also would be available to Missouri’s six major sports teams: the Cardinals, Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Blues, St. Louis City soccer club and Kansas City Current women’s professional soccer team. Also, teams would have an exclusive zone around their stadiums for promoting their own team-branded skins.
Some lawmakers suggested, in light of the possible move by the Kansas City Chiefs to Kansas, that venues, not teams, own the skins. Senators questioned whether the team would have to give up its skin if it left Missouri. Anne Scharf, director of civic affairs for the Chiefs, said any move by the Chiefs to Kansas would not happen soon since the team has nine years left on its Arrowhead Stadium lease.
