Recently elected Ohio Governor Mike DeWine told reporters last week that nothing will stop sports betting from arriving in the Buckeye State. “It’s coming to Ohio, whether people want it or not,” he said.
Since it is coming, it is important to do the regulation of it correctly, said the state’s former top law enforcement official. “I think it’s important for Ohio to do it right. We just need to make sure it’s done so we control as much as we can,” he said. “It is the intent of the General Assembly to develop and enact legislation legalizing sports wagering.”
While he was running for governor Attorney General DeWine said that although he was against expanding gambling, “but sports gaming is clearly coming to Ohio. We need to do it the right way and not let any special interests go [to] the ballot and determine how it’s going to be regulated and where the money is going to go.”
The 2009 constitutional amendment that authorized the state’s four casino resorts appears to give the state government the authority to legalize sports betting without going to the voters for another authorization—and possibly without a bill from the legislature.
It’s that last part that may concern the incoming governor, that the activity not be simply launched without the approval of lawmakers.
The state opened its first casinos in 2012, and as attorney general DeWine oversaw the regulation of them.
