below New Jersey<\/a>, the largest sports wagering market in the US. Dutton’s proposed tax scheme is also far more favorable than the 34 percent and 51 percent, respectively, in place in Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nOn the other hand, HB 1121 forbids betting on Texas colleges.<\/p>\n
That’s potentially meaningful when accounting for the fact that football is the most wagered-on sport in the US, the most popular sport in the Lone Star State, and the state is home to a dozen schools that play at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level<\/strong>.<\/p>\nObstacles to Passage<\/h2>\n
With Texas being the second-largest state, there’s an obvious desire among operators to see sports wagering come to life there. But hurdles are plentiful.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbbott opposes gambling expansion. Legislative approval thresholds are high,\u201d notes Eilers & Krejcik. \u201cLas Vegas Sands is lobbying for land-based casino authorization\u2014an effort that could deprive online sports betting of political oxygen. The list of obstacles go on.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, other reports indicate that Abbott is warming to sports betting and that it’s Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick that’s more opposed to the idea. Both are Republicans. Patrick also acts as president of the state senate, where it’s believed some members are against gaming expansion of any type on moral grounds<\/strong>.<\/p>\nThe other \u201cproblem\u201d is Texas’s strong fiscal position.<\/a> While some states are scrambling for revenue in the wake of COVID-19, the Lone Star State faces only modest shortfalls in the coming fiscal year, meaning debate on issues such as cannabis, casinos, and sports wagering is a luxury, not a necessity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rep. Harold Dutton Jr. (D-Houston) recently introduced mobile-only sports wagering legislation in the Texas state House. The proposal limits the number of permits issued to five and features a favorable tax rate of 6.25 percent. Dutton is one of the longest-serving members in the state’s House of Representatives. He proposes that the Texas Department of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":162130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,1074],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Dutton Giving Texas Sports Betting a Try with New Legislation<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n