Last summer, Maine legislators passed a bill sports betting legislation. In January Governor Janet Mills vetoed the bill and now lawmakers are scrambling to find enough votes to overturn her veto. They have until April.
In her veto message, Mills wrote, “Before Maine joins the frenzy of states hungry to attract this market, I believe we need to examine the issue more clearly, better understand the evolving experiences of other states, and thoughtfully determine the best approach for Maine.”
The sports betting legislation was approved with almost no opposition. Supporters say the bets could add $5 million annually to the general fund. However, there’s a high bar proponents would need to leap to override Mills’ veto: a two-thirds vote in both chambers. That requires that lawmakers who initially opposed the bill be corralled into the “yes” column. This may be too much heavy lifting to achieve by April.
There’s one factor working in favor of this Hail Mary pass: New Hampshire, which shares a 170 mile state line with Maine, has approved and gone live with sports betting. The state hired DraftKings to operate the mobile app, which went live the penultimate day of 2019. A robust level of sports betting ensued in the Granite State, including in the border town of Portsmouth.
The relatively short legislative session opened on January 8. The governor had three days to sign, veto or allow bills to become law without a signature. The sportsbook bill was one of the bills she vetoed, taking her action late on the third day.
Some legislators wanted to act on January 14, but not enough were present to schedule a vote. On January 16, the Senate cancelled a session due to snow.
Now opinion seems to be that the veto will not be overridden.
Meanwhile, the veto of sports betting in Maine is having ripple effects across the state line in New Hampshire. Some residents using the DraftKings app can’t make wagers within one half mile of the state line, the Portsmouth Herald reported.
Some businesses, especially pubs and sports bars in Portsmouth, have been notified by DraftKings that sports betting won’t be permitted at their locations because they’re so close to the border. This could affect two dozen or more establishments within the half mile.
One restaurant and bar owner told Mainebiz.com that she’s losing business to establishments that are farther into the state. “Our identity and such a large portion of my income is sports-related,” said the owner. “The legalization of sports betting does cast a wider net of what people will watch. If people have a little bit of money on a game, it’s more interesting.”
DraftKings spokesman James Chisholm said the “buffer zone” was by design, to prevent anyone from accidentally being allowed to place a sports wager from New Hampshire. But he minimized the effects, calling them “isolated instances.” He said the company is working with the app’s geolocation vendor to narrow that buffer.
In Somersworth, New Hampshire, another border town, the “buffer zone” is negatively impacting economic growth, according to Mayor Dana Hilliard. He told the Herald, “Just like everyone else in a sport has to play fair, I think the state of Maine has to play fair when it comes to commerce and legalized activities in New Hampshire.”
