Pennsylvania Headed for Legalized Online Gambling

Big things are happening for the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, particularly in the realm of online gambling. On May 24th, it made significant progress in the LEGALIZATION of online gambling, following the State Senate’s motion to a proposed legislation, enabling players to access games from the state’s twelve casinos, online. It was approved by a vote of 38 to 12 last Wednesday.

The next move lies in the hands of those making up the House of Representatives, as the legislation awaits their vote. If all goes smoothly, it will be approved once again, and signed into law by the governor, Tom Wolf, making Pennsylvania the first state to make its land-based casino and lottery games accessible online. In this case, operators would be responsible for a $10 million licensing fee, with games generating a 54% revenue tax.

While the main focus of the legislation is online gambling, if approved, it would not be the only news in relation to gambling for the state. In fact, it would also legalize daily fantasy sports, allow for the integration of gaming machines inside airports, and also reinstate a casino host fee, a motion that was denied last year. If signed by Wolf, the legislation is estimated to gain an entirely new and increased set of revenue, making it possible to fund select programs to better the state and provide more options to its residents.

With the state’s lottery revenue having decreased, State Senator, Jay Costa, explained to The Associated Press, the importance of moving forward with online gaming to revive the lottery sector. “To not have those folks, we lose business along those lines but, more importantly, we lose an opportunity, an opportunity to have people who would be playing in that space.”