Sports betting is unlikely to be offered in Tennessee anytime soon, said Governor Bill Haslam. “That would obviously have to go through the legislature. It’s not something I would focus on,” he said. Asked if saw sports betting coming to Tennessee, state Senator Jon Lundberg added, “No. Not in the foreseeable future. We haven’t talked about sports betting. I haven’t seen any major push or initiative at all.”
In addition, state Rep. Bud Hulsey said, “You may have a portion of folks who may be okay with sports betting, but I don’t think the majority of the legislature would support that. The way it is right now, I don’t think so.”
Lundberg noted state Sen. Frank Niceley filed legislation in the last session to establish a Tennessee Horse Racing Commission to regulate parimutuel wagering in the state. However, the measure did not move out of committee.
Observers have suggested the legislature at least should conduct do a fiscal review to determine the cost to set up a structure to regulate sports gambling and what potential revenue could be. The legislature could have the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations study the cost of establishing a framework for sports betting and the Fiscal Review Office could calculate the fiscal impact of sports betting legislation.
