Sports betting is not a priority in the Texas legislature, which is influenced more by evangelical conservatives than it has been by high-powered lobbying by Las Vegas gaming interests and Lone Star State professional sports teams.
The state’s lawmakers last year resisted the expensive lobbying of the late Sheldon Adelson’s Las Vegas Sands Corp., despite his bankrolling of the state’s GOP in its successful efforts to retain control of the legislature. No legislative committee took up sports betting during the session.
R.G. Ratcliffe, a political columnist with the Texas Monthly, told Sports Handle: “The religious right does a very good job of winning Republican primaries in Texas.” He added, “The best chance that the gambling interests have of getting passage of anything in Texas is to have an economic downturn. What the gambling interests were betting on this last session is it looked like we were going to have a huge economic downfall due to Covid. But they didn’t have the financial crisis everyone thought they were going to have, so it kind of fell flat.” Ratcliffe doesn’t see sports betting happening at least until 2030.
Jim “Mattress Mack” Mclinvale, one of Texas’ most well-known sports bettors, agrees. “My thinking is it’s at least 10 years out,” he told Sports Handle.
Although the lobbying efforts by the Las Vegas Sands operation didn’t bear fruit last year, it was nevertheless educational for lawmakers. Rep. Dan Huberty commented, “It was an educational experience for members of the legislature for what the Supreme Court did in 2018 and how many other states are doing it — that the economics of it are a long-term positive. It’s the first time in many, many years there’s an open dialogue in the state of Texas, including the discussion of destination and resort gambling.”
The notion of sports betting is actually popular with the public, according to a recent poll by the Dallas Morning News and the University of Texas-Tyler, which found that 57 percent support casino gaming, 43 percent support sports betting, with 29 percent opposing casino gaming, and 26 percent opposing sports betting.
But for a referendum to make it to the ballot it requires a vote by the legislature to put it there. Texas does not allow for citizens’ initiatives. Sports betting would also require amending the Texas constitution.
