{"id":144760,"date":"2020-08-13T09:06:02","date_gmt":"2020-08-13T16:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=144760"},"modified":"2022-07-26T11:56:49","modified_gmt":"2022-07-26T16:56:49","slug":"indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Indiana may consider legalizing iGaming as early as next year, according to a casino executive and a key legislator behind the state\u2019s 2019 expanded gaming law.<\/p>\n

\"Indiana
State Sen. Jon Ford (R-Terre Haute) speaks during an Indiana state Senate session last year. Ford, one of the key lawmakers behind expanding gaming in the state, believes a bill to allow online casino gaming could happen when the legislature reconvenes next year. (Image: Lauren Chapman\/IPB News<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

President and CEO Dan Lee said on a call last week that he believes the Hoosier State may take up it when the legislature reconvenes next year. He was speaking with investment analysts to discuss Full House Resorts<\/a> second-quarter earnings. Colorado, too, may consider expansion, he said, as states look to battle fiscal issues caused by the COVID-19 crisis.<\/p>\n

There are pressures on state budgets like never before, and yet internet gaming is more socially acceptable,\u201d Lee said. \u201cEverybody is like, \u2018Well, why not? We already have regular casinos. We already have sports betting that you can do online. Why wouldn’t we allow you to play a slot machine online?\u2019 And so, it’s a good source of revenues to states.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Indiana is no exception. According to Indiana\u2019s State Budget Agency, the state\u2019s general fund received just $15.4 billion in the fiscal year 2020, which ended in June. That was nearly $1.3 billion, or 7.8 percent, off projections.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Among the reasons for the shortfall was the state’s casinos having to close<\/a> for three months because of the coronavirus. The state\u2019s riverboats generated just $200.3 million for the general fund, missing the projected $304.5 million by more than a third. The two racinos provided just $90.4 million to the state\u2019s general coffer — $41 million shy of what the state projected.<\/p>\n

Not Just Budget<\/h2>\n

Financial concerns are one reason Indiana<\/a> may consider online gaming. But state Sen. Jon Ford (R-Terre Haute) said Wednesday there are other reasons for the state to consider it as well. Neighboring Michigan is planning to launch iGaming<\/a> statewide as soon as later this year.<\/p>\n

Another reason would be market opportunities for the casinos.<\/p>\n

Sports wagering opened up a whole new demographic to our casinos,\u201d <\/strong>Ford told Casino.org<\/em>. \u201cIt\u2019s well-documented across the country the younger generations are not going to brick and mortar casinos quite as much.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Ford added that he prefers an incremental approach that would first look to add mobile casino gaming, such as slots and traditional table games, then look to add online poker later. That approach started even before sports betting was allowed when the state approved daily fantasy sports.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even with the coronavirus pandemic, Indiana<\/a> has quickly become one of the top sports betting states in the country, behind only Nevada<\/a>, New Jersey<\/a>, and Pennsylvania<\/a>. After taking its first bets last September, the state\u2019s sportsbooks surpassed $1 billion in total handle last month.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew that there would be a market there, and that we would attract people to sports wagering,\u201d Ford said. \u201cI don\u2019t know that I thought it would necessarily have gone as smooth as it did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indiana\u2019s legislature meets annually, and next year is a budget year for state lawmakers, meaning they will be responsible for passing a two-year spending plan during the four-and-a-half month session.<\/p>\n

An expanded gaming bill would only need simple majorities to pass in both chambers.<\/p>\n

iGaming Growth Slow, But Coming<\/h2>\n

Indiana\u2019s sports betting law allows the casinos to operate a retail sportsbook at the casino or off-track betting parlor and partner with up to three mobile providers, also known as skins.<\/p>\n

Full House\u2019s online sports betting partners are BetAmerica, which has already launched Indiana, Smarkets, and Wynn Resorts. Lee told analysts he expects those two to roll out in Indiana sometime this quarter if football season kicks off.<\/p>\n

CFO Lewis Fanger told analysts the agreements with those three are just for sports. Full House would likely look to get the online gaming license for itself. But if something happened, it could then look to extend those agreements to mobile casinos, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat strongly appears is that sports wagering is the small piece of the pie,\u201d Fanger said. \u201cIt’s the online casino itself where you see significantly more revenue being generated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Lee doesn\u2019t see online gaming as cannibalizing the brick-and-mortar businesses. Commercial and tribal casinos generate more than $60 billion in revenue in a normal year, Lee said. And he believes \u2013 based on New Jersey\u2019s performance \u2013 online gaming<\/a> could generate up to an additional $20 billion annually.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

While sports betting\u2019s growth has been rapid since the US Supreme Court’s PASPA decision two years ago, iGaming has not found similar traction. Currently, online slots and table games are available in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Michigan has passed a law, but is working on the regulations for a pending launch.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s been slow to ramp up. But it’s coming, and then I think you’re going to have expansion of it,\u201d Lee said. \u201cAnd in almost every case, it’s tied to brick-and-mortar.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Indiana may consider legalizing iGaming as early as next year, according to a casino executive and a key legislator behind the state\u2019s 2019 expanded gaming law. President and CEO Dan Lee said on a call last week that he believes the Hoosier State may take up it when the legislature reconvenes next year. He was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":144763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,13],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nIndiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-08-13T16:06:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-07-26T16:56:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steve Bittenbender\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Steve Bittenbender\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/\",\"name\":\"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-08-13T16:06:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-07-26T16:56:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/eb30e765d812fc9b38b333f8d13068b2\"},\"description\":\"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg\",\"width\":1560,\"height\":900,\"caption\":\"State Sen. Jon Ford (R-Terre Haute) speaks during an Indiana state Senate session last year. Ford, one of the key lawmakers behind expanding gaming in the state, believes a bill to allow online casino gaming could happen when the legislature reconvenes next year. (Image: Lauren Chapman\/IPB News)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"iGaming\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/internet-gaming\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Casino.org\",\"description\":\"Latest Casino and Gaming News\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/eb30e765d812fc9b38b333f8d13068b2\",\"name\":\"Steve Bittenbender\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-7-1-96x96.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-7-1-96x96.png\",\"caption\":\"Steve Bittenbender\"},\"description\":\"Steve Bittenbender covers Midwest and Gulport news for Casino.org. He also specializes in sports betting and horse racing. Steve is a veteran reporter and brings more than two decades of experience covering sports, business and politics. He joined Casino.org in 2019. Steve has also covered major collegiate and professional sports for the Associated Press and the Louisville Courier-Journal and is frequently featured on local network TV newscasts and podcasts for his horse racing business and legislative expertise. A Reuters contributor, he has also previously served as editor for Government Security News. Steve lives in Louisville, Kentucky -- the epicenter of the US horse racing industry -- with his wife and son. He is also an avid poker player, having learned from his uncle as a wholesome after-school pastime with cookies and milk. Contact Steve at stevebittenbender@casino.org.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/author\/steve-bittenbender\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year","description":"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year","og_description":"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/","og_site_name":"Casino.org","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews","article_published_time":"2020-08-13T16:06:02+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-07-26T16:56:49+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1560,"height":900,"url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Steve Bittenbender","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@Casino_Org","twitter_site":"@Casino_Org","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Steve Bittenbender","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/","name":"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg","datePublished":"2020-08-13T16:06:02+00:00","dateModified":"2022-07-26T16:56:49+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/eb30e765d812fc9b38b333f8d13068b2"},"description":"Both Full House Resorts CEO Dan Lee and Indiana state Sen. Jon Ford expect the state legislature to consider an iGaming bill next year.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/jon_ford-lc-1560x900-1.jpg","width":1560,"height":900,"caption":"State Sen. Jon Ford (R-Terre Haute) speaks during an Indiana state Senate session last year. Ford, one of the key lawmakers behind expanding gaming in the state, believes a bill to allow online casino gaming could happen when the legislature reconvenes next year. (Image: Lauren Chapman\/IPB News)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/indiana-likely-to-consider-online-casino-gaming-expansion-next-year\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"iGaming","item":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/internet-gaming\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Indiana Legislature Likely to Consider Online Casino Gaming Next Year"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/","name":"Casino.org","description":"Latest Casino and Gaming News","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/eb30e765d812fc9b38b333f8d13068b2","name":"Steve Bittenbender","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-7-1-96x96.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/cropped-7-1-96x96.png","caption":"Steve Bittenbender"},"description":"Steve Bittenbender covers Midwest and Gulport news for Casino.org. He also specializes in sports betting and horse racing. Steve is a veteran reporter and brings more than two decades of experience covering sports, business and politics. He joined Casino.org in 2019. Steve has also covered major collegiate and professional sports for the Associated Press and the Louisville Courier-Journal and is frequently featured on local network TV newscasts and podcasts for his horse racing business and legislative expertise. A Reuters contributor, he has also previously served as editor for Government Security News. Steve lives in Louisville, Kentucky -- the epicenter of the US horse racing industry -- with his wife and son. He is also an avid poker player, having learned from his uncle as a wholesome after-school pastime with cookies and milk. Contact Steve at stevebittenbender@casino.org.","url":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/author\/steve-bittenbender\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144760"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=144760"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144760\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/144763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=144760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=144760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=144760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}