Texas lawmakers have resisted the blandishments of the army of lobbyists hired by Las Vegas Sands and an organization that represents the state’s professional sports teams, the Sports Betting Alliance. Legalization of either casino resorts or sports betting will likely have to wait for another day.
“There’s not time for it to pass this session,” Rep. John Kuempel, one of the proponents of casinos in the Lone Star State, told the Dallas Morning News. The legislative session runs out at the end of May and none of the proposed bills have been voted out of committee.
Moreover, any gaming bill would require amending the Texas constitution, which would require two-thirds of both chambers to send the measure to the voters.
What had been seen as the main incentive to developing a new revenue source, a budget deficit, turned out not nearly so dismaying. That didn’t stop Kuempel, a Republican and Senator Carol Alvarado, a Democrat, from partnering to try.
Alvarado is in for the long haul. She told the News: “I’m more optimistic than I’ve ever been,” adding, “We’ve known all this is a long-term attempt.”
The two had wanted to bring both sports betting and casinos to the state’s four largest cities, with Dallas being the main prize. Their measures would also have allowed Texas’s three federally-recognized tribes to offer Class III gaming—long resisted by the state government.
The Sports Betting Alliance, which includes such teams as the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers, and Las Vegas Sands spent millions to try to turn the tide their way. LVS spent $3 million on 74 lobbyists.
The Alliance sought to authorize the state to license permits, called “skins” to online providers of sports betting, e.g. DraftKings, which would then have to partner with a sports franchise or racetrack. Taxes would have been earmarked for education.
LVS senior vice president of government affairs Andy Abboud said his company is playing a long game. He told the Austin American-Statesman “We have said from the beginning that we’re committed to Texas for the long haul,” and added, “We have made great strides this session and have enjoyed meeting with lawmakers about our vision for destination resorts and answering all the questions they have.”
He promised to “continue to build on this progress over the final days of the legislation session, and over the coming months, we will continue to build community support across the state to ultimately turn this vision into a reality.”
The legislature will not be meeting again until 2023. Kuempel, if reelected, promises to try again then.
