The public comment period for proposed sports-betting rules in Ohio closed April 28, and the Ohio Lottery Commission got an earful about certain regulations affecting bars and restaurants, or Type C establishments—in particular, regarding the two-kiosk limit.
The rule reads, “Unless otherwise approved by the director, no Type C sports gaming host shall have more than two self-service terminals operational at the licensed facility.”
The two-kiosk limit was part of a Senate bill that passed last June, but the state’s sports wagering statute did not include such a restriction when it was passed last December; it simply required a proprietor to notify the Ohio Casino Control Commission “if it intends to install more than two terminals.” The Casino Control Commission has no restriction on the number of terminals for Type C licenses, but the Lottery now does.
Observers said there is a chance the controversial measure could be revised prior to final adoption if the public outcry is loud enough. This comment from Jim Moehring, owner of the Holy Grail Tavern & Grille in Cincinnati, is typical: “My gut tells me on a Reds game or a Bengals game, 20 minutes before the game starts, two is not going to be enough.”
Another controversial lottery rule states gaming hosts “must pay prizes up to $599,” but it doesn’t say that they must be paid in cash. But the sports gaming statute says winners of “sports lottery gaming” can elect to receive their payments “in cash from any type C gaming host.” Venue owners said this could cause them to have to keep thousands of dollars of cash on hand, resulting in security and accounting issues.
One more troublesome requirement isn’t included in the proposed lottery rules but it’s written into the sports-betting law. It limits kiosks to offering only four kinds of bets: spread wagers, over-under wagers, moneyline wagers and parlays of up to four component bets. Moehring said, “So, they can go to the casino, make any bet they want. Or they can sit on their app, make any bet they want. But they can’t make full bets on our kiosk. Why?”
Type C licenses will be issued by the Casino Control Commission and regulated by the Ohio Lottery, which projects 2,500 sports betting hosts. Bars and restaurants would pay a $1,000 fee for a 3-year license. Twenty sports gaming platforms will be allowed to operate the kiosks. The sports gaming law requires the market to launch by January 1, 2023.
Also in Ohio, officials at the University of Toledo said they agree with Ohio State University’s recommendation to the Ohio Casino Control Commission to allow sports betting on college athletics only on the outcome of football and basketball games; OSU wants to ban wagers on non-revenue collegiate sports such as baseball, tennis and track.
Kenny Schank, assistant athletic director for compliance at the University of Toledo, said, “I think that’s a great recommendation. You don’t really want sports betting on college sports, but let’s face it, the onion has slowly been getting peeled back.”
Besides asking to limit sports wagering to football and basketball, OSU also recommended not allowing prop bets related to college sports and or bets on collegiate club sports. In a letter submitted to the commission in January, OSU Vice President for Government Affairs Stacy Rastauskas proposed establishing “enhanced penalties and enforcement for coercion and cheating.”
Schank said limiting sports betting makes sense because information on college football and basketball is much more “widely available” to the public than non-revenue sports like golf, tennis and track and field. He said banning prop bets on college sports also makes sense because of the potential for student-athletes to be approached by individuals trying to influence their performance or to pay for information.
