Arizona Introduced Tribal Sports Betting Bill

The state of Arizona’s supreme legislative body is ready to introduce the state’s very-first sports betting bill…

…and by doing so, will its neighbors to the east, New Mexico, who in October, became the sixth US state with regulated sports betting.

Sports Betting in Arizona

The bill, SB 1158, was introduced by Senator, Sonny Borelli, and representatives, Mark Finchem and Leo Biasiucci. If the bill es and becomes law, this southwestern state known for its magnificent Grand Canyon…

…would become one of the rare US states to limit sports wagering to be operated by tribes.

“Each federally recognized Indian tribe that has a tribal-state gaming compact entered into pursuant to Chapter 6 of this title and that has tribal headquarters on Indian lands located in this state may operate sports betting as defined in Section 13-3301. No other person or entity may operate sports betting,” reads the Arizona bill.

But, unlike Connecticut’s proposal to Arizona lawmakers want to allow tribes to offer sports betting through kiosks or self-service terminals. Sports betting would also be allowed on similar devices that are located inside of licensed bars or private clubs.

Possibility of Agreements

In Arizona, there are 16 federally recognized tribes at the moment, that manage 24 tribal gambling facilities.

But, there will also be an opportunity for facilities that are not located on tribal lands to be granted sports betting licenses. According to the Arizona bill, tribes should also be given the power to agree with non-tribal entities and allow them to provide sports betting in their amenities.

Low Tax Rates

If the bill es, tribes that wish to offer sports betting to Arizona wagers would have to pay a tax. Luckily, the bill stated that tribes would only pay a tax at a minimum rate of 6.75% of adjusted gross revenue…

…which is the same as the tax revenue in Nevada.

On the other hand, Pennsylvania, which legalized sports betting last year, has a much higher tax rate of 36%.

Other Clauses of the Bill

Also, it is stated in the bill that wagers will have the opportunity to place their bets on a wide range of sports, but they won’t be allowed to bet on college sporting events organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

For now, the wagers will have to place their bets solely in-person…

…because the bill doesn’t mention anything about online sports betting or placing bets via mobile phone apps.

The operators also have to make sure that betting is in tune with tribal gaming regulations that must be respected if they want to get a license.

Sports Betting in the USA

Until now, since the US Supreme Court overturned the federal ban in May 2018, more than 40 bills in more than 18 US states have been introduced…

…and are patiently waiting to officially become law.

Currently, eight US states have fully legalized sports betting under their jurisdiction. Those states are Nevada, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Delaware, Mississippi, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico.

Source:

“Arizona considers tribal sports betting bill”, igamingbusiness.com, January 25, 2019.