In Georgia, House Tourism and Economic Development Chairman Ron Stephens filed House Bill 86 that would legalize sports betting under the authority of the Georgia Lottery. Sports wagering could start as soon as July, Stephens said. Proceeds would go to the HOPE scholarship fund. A constitutional amendment, which would require a two-thirds vote in the House and Senate and a majority of Georgia voters, would not be necessary, Stephens said.
Proponents said Georgia gamblers now spend $1.5 billion a year illegally wagering on sports. “Georgia just aims to capture those revenues for what people are already doing,” Stephens said. “It’s anticipated to bring upward of $100 million in tax revenue. In the big scheme of things, it’s not a lot, but it’s an additional game that the lottery would offer,” Stephens said. Opponents said that total is inflated.
Under House Bill 86, sports betting revenue would be taxed at 16 percent. Players must be at least age 21 and must be located within Georgia.
Stephens’ bill has the support of the Georgia Professional Sports Integrity Alliance, a coalition of four professional Atlanta sports franchises: the Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta Hawks and Atlanta United.
Atlanta Braves President and Chief Executive Officer Derek Schiller said, “We don’t receive direct revenue from this. This is good for our fans, we think, from a fan engagement perspective. But it’s also good for the state because it drives new tax revenue to the state, especially in this unique time that we’re in and going to be recovering from.”
Atlanta Hawks Chief Executive Officer Steve Koonin added, “Billions of dollars a year are already being gambled in Georgia and the state gets nothing, no tax, no benefit. We want this to be mobile only. We don’t want to see brick and mortar facilities.”
Stephens added he added he intends to file legislation in the next few weeks that would allow voters to approve casino gambling and horseracing. “We’re putting the path of least resistance first, then, hopefully, it would build the momentum to get the other ones through,” Stephens said.
Not everyone is glad sports betting could become a reality in Georgia. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board Public Affairs Representative Mike Griffin stated, “It’s not a win-win. It’s a lose-lose. The only people that win are the people that run the gambling operations.” Virginia Galloway, a lobbyist with the Georgia Faith and Freedom Coalition, said expanding gambling by stating it will boost the HOPE scholarship program is “poor public policy. Gambling always costs more than it brings in,” she said.
However, sports betting companies FanDuel and DraftKings said they have built-in protections against problem gambling. DraftKings President and Co-Founder Matt Kalish said, “Consumers can do things like exclude themselves permanently from ever seeing the platform or being able to participate again, plus time restrictions and deposit limits.”
FanDuel Governmental Affairs Director Stacie Stern noted, “The ability for Georgia to bring it into the light, put some guardrails on it, regulate it in a sensible way and bring tax revenue to the state, I think is really the best way to protect the people who want to participate in this activity.”
