Sports betting was a hot topic at the recent Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association’s 24th Annual Conference and Trade Show, held in Oklahoma City at the Cox Convention Center. Gaming Laboratories International Vice President of Government Relations and General Counsel Kevin Mullally, who moderated a panel on the subject, said, “Those looking at a one-size-fits-all answer to this might be looking at this for a long time. There are different issues for the tribes and the states to consider.”
Oklahoma is one of 14 states in which sports betting bills have been introduced but haven’t passed. The Oklahoma measure would allow expanding the tribal-state compact and including “sports pools,” allowing “wagering on the outcome of one or more competitive games in which athletes participate, or on one or more performances of such athletes in such games where all bets are placed in a common pool or pot from which all player winnings, prizes and direct costs are paid.”
Panel member Debbie Thundercloud, chief of staff of the National Indian Gaming Association, noted legalizing sports betting doesn’t mean illegal sports betting will disappear. “The rest of the world is really watching the U.S. Other countries have engaged in sports betting, but it hasn’t stopped the illegal market.” She added banking, gaming and law enforcement organizations will have to work together to constantly monitor the legal sports market.
The Chickasaw Nation’s Department of Commerce Director of Gaming Affairs Matthew Morgan noted tribes and the state of Oklahoma have a lot at stake and need to make sure sports betting is done correctly and benefits all parties. “It’s hard to make prohibition work. The regulatory model is much more effective. Why do we want to continue to send the revenue somewhere else? The tribal interests and state interests are intertwined. As we do better, the state does better.”
However, American Gaming Association Government Relations Director Eloy Martinez pointed out taxes will make a difference in attracting bettors to the legal options. He noted Pennsylvania has proposed a 36 percent tax on sports wagering, compared to a 6.75 percent tax rate in Nevada. “We want to be in a position to negate the legal market, not highlight it,” Martinez said.
He noted the so-called 1 percent integrity fee promoted by the National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball and the Professional Golf Association Tour cuts into sports betting’s slim margins. In Nevada, that’s about 6 percent, so a $100 bet generates only about $1.25 after employees are paid. “People will have to ask themselves why they want to do this,” Martinez said.
Morgan stated tribes will need to carefully consider the costs of casino operations and more, since starting a new business venture, like sports betting, will cost money that will have to come from other operations that support tribal citizens, like health care or education. “You could not only be putting your business at risk, but your whole community at risk,” he said.
