Now that Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont has called for the passage of a sports betting bill in his State of the State address, most of the players are in their places for passage of such a bill. Lamont’s support has been necessary to bring all the parties to the bargaining table, especially the gaming tribes who operate the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods.
At the January 6 address, the governor made a brief mention of sports betting. It was the first time he had gone on record supporting wagering on sports.
Senator Cathy Osten January 13 introduced SB 146, a “placeholder” bill of one paragraph that does no more than call for the passage of statewide mobile sports betting at the two casinos, permits online sales of lottery tickets and allows the lottery to also sell keno games online. It has been referred to the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Security.
Osten has been pushing such a bill for three years. Recently she said she thought the stars were aligned for passage, citing the fact that some opposition that existed last year has evaporated. Most particularly from MGM Resorts International, which had previously fought tooth and nail against expanding Indian gaming at the expense of commercial gaming. And which had tried to insert a very big foot in the door with a proposal for a commercial casino in Bridgeport. This year, however, MGM has its own problems in Massachusetts and doesn’t even have lobbyists in the state.
If Osten’s bill or something like it is adopted, the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes will have exclusivity on sportsbook. Which is what they have always insisted is their right through their state tribal gaming compacts.
States around Connecticut have been busily passing sports betting bills, including Rhode Island and New Hampshire, while Massachusetts and Maine could do so this year. New York offers in-person sports betting. All are opportunities for Connecticut residents to cross state lines and make bets whose taxes go to states other than Connecticut.
Both Lamont and his predecessor tried to negotiate a deal with the tribes, without success. Last month Mashantucket Pequot chairman Rodney Butler commented on that: “In fairness, give Lamont the benefit of the doubt, it was a learning curve and new lawmakers didn’t fully appreciate what the tribes had done for the government, for the state. And they didn’t understand what sovereignty meant. But it was critical to get them to understand and it took longer than we wanted, but they needed to understand what sovereignty means and what a government-to-government relationship means.”
Now, it appears that Lamont largely accepts that view, which jibes with what Senator Osten’s bill would do.
There is plenty of time to craft such a bill since the legislative session doesn’t expire until June.
In anticipation of an eventual bill, Foxwoods recently announced a partnership with DraftKings and the Mohegan Sun last year chose Kambi Sports to manage retail sportsbook should it be legalized.
