In Kentucky, three Democratic state Reps. Derrick Graham, Rachel Roberts and Cherlynn Stevenson are sponsoring HB 106, which would legalize sports betting, online poker and daily fantasy sports.
It’s the fourth consecutive year that lawmakers have attempted to pass this legislation. The bill currently is before the House Committee on Committees. The sponsorship of the bill is impressive, as Graham is the Democratic floor leader, Stevenson is caucus chair and Roberts is whip.
Democratic Governor Andy Beshear supports legal sports betting. In September, at the groundbreaking for Turfway Park, he said, “I’m 100 percent for sports betting. Pushed it every year I’ve been governor and as I was attorney general Need a few people in the general assembly to come around. There are a whole lot of them here tonight. Hopefully, they like what they see.”
However, observers said Republicans may not want to give Beshear any legislative wins, especially since he’s up for reelection this year.
Under the measure, an online poker license fee would cost $250,000 and net revenue would be taxed at 6.75 percent. The bill mandates the use of geolocation software “to ensure that all online poker is conducted within the geographical confines of the state of Kentucky.” Also, online poker sites would have to verify that players are at least 18 years old.
