Sports Betting Soon to Become Reality in Michigan, Full House Vote Needed

Representative, Brandt Iden, filled the sports betting bill filed and moved it closer to ing the Michigan House. This was followed by the chamber’s Ways and Means Committee approval when the proposal was ed by a vote of 10-1.

The House Bill 4916, the Lawful Sports Betting Act, has been modified to incline the tax rate to 8.75% of gross receipts. As a small reminder, the original percent defined in the bill was 8.0%.

Details of the Amended Version of the Proposal

Besides leveling-up tax rates, the altered proposal also expands on data usage, after the bill previously stated that sports governing institutions could ask the Division of Sports Betting to have operators utilize official league data to settle tier 2 (in-play) wagers.

According to the original draft…

… operators could challenge this if they were able to prove that the leagues failed to supply a data feed on commercially reasonable .

The expansion clarified this point by defining that Michigan authorities must investigate whether a league is offering their information via more than one provider, and the commercial they are requesting, based on pricing in other regulated markets.

The attention must also be paid on the quality and depth of the data feed on offer.

Finding Adequate Means to Deliver Data

Provided the operators meet all these criteria, the Division of Sports Betting will uphold the request. In case there is an obstacle that would enable them to deliver the needed information, operators would be able to utilize any available source.

Should an operator challenge whether the information is being offered on commercially reasonable , any available data feed as an interim measure would be allowed.

Brief Recap of the Sports Wagering HB4916

As the HB4916 has already ed the Michigan House Committee on Regulatory Reform before heading to Ways and Means, the bill is now going to a full House vote.

The whole process of accepting the activity in this state…

…was rather slow, but productive. On September 5, Iden submitted House Bill 4916 to the Committee, which progressed it further on September 17.

Besides approving sports wagering, the bill also allows pre-game and in-play betting. According to the bill, there would be a new body in charge as the new regulator on this state’s market – The Division of Sports Betting.

The proposal also clarifies that sports betting operators would need to pay a $200,000 license fee. Besides this fee, the annual license renewal fee would be $100,000.

Source:

“Amended Michigan betting bill es second House Committee”, igbnorthamerica.com, October 30, 2019.