The Michigan House Ways and Means Committee recently heard testimony on eight gambling bills, including online gambling. Committee Chairman state Rep. Brandt Iden spelled out all the reasons why Michigan should legalize online gambling. However, representatives from the state budget office said Governor Gretchen Whitmer has the same concerns as former Governor Rick Snyder, who vetoed similar legislation last year. They fear online gambling will result in lower revenue to the state and School Aid Fund by cannibalizing dollars from the higher-taxed iLottery.
The legislation also includes daily fantasy sports.
Iden said he’s “working with stakeholders behind the scenes to make sure we get the language right. My intention is to put all the bills up for a vote in June. I’m going to keep driving at getting it done before summer break.”
Regarding sports betting, Iden said he’s “been working behind the scenes” to reach a consensus with industry stakeholders on language for a standalone bill and plans to introduce comprehensive Michigan sports betting legislation by the end of May. “My plan is to introduce that bill and hopefully have it catch up to the rest of the package,” Iden said.
At the hearing, FanDuel Director of Government Affairs Andrew Winchell said FanDuel Sportsbook has seen “a rapid increase” in the total amount wagered in New Jersey. Those gains are not the result of cannibalization, he said. “Other forms have also remained flat or grown, depending on the product, year over year. That revenue has to be coming from somewhere. Since it’s not displacing other casino spend or other lottery spend, as far as we’ve seen, we suspect that’s captured from the illegal market.”
Another witness, John Pappas, representing GeoComply, demonstrated technology showing a real-time map of location checks in and around New Jersey. Also, representatives from Detroit’s three commercial casinos also offered support of the legislative package.
Iden has been working on expanding gambling in Michigan for several years. He sponsored the package lawmakers approved on the last day of the 2018 session. However, Snyder unexpectedly vetoed it just before leaving office.
