Georgia has failed to pass legislation to legalize sports betting, casinos, and horse racing in the state. The bill, Senate Resolution 135 didn’t come before the senate before the legislative session ended.
What was in Senate Resolution 135?
Senate Resolution 135 would require voters to approve a constitutional amendment for all forms of gambling to be legalized in the state — casinos, sports betting, and horse racing.
The House Committee on Economic Development & Tourism passed the resolution in 2021, and failed to pass through the senate — it was reintroduced by Senator Jeff Mullis and Senator Bill Cowsert in 2022, and was passed 160-6 before moving to the Senate. Their legislative session ended the same day the vote was set to take place, with Senate unable to discuss or vote on the bill. Economic Development & Tourism Chairman Ron Stephens also detailed the possibility that taxing sports betting could provide more than $40 million a year for college scholarships and preschool subsidies.
An additional bill, Senate Bill 142 was introduced which detailed intentions to create a Georgia Sports Betting Commission to manage online betting if the bill passed.
Georgians aren’t the only people disappointed by the decision. Many professional sports leagues supported the bill.
Atlanta Braves CEO, Derek Schiller, wasn’t happy with the bills’ failure to pass, saying “I know for a fact we did everything we could to try, and so I don’t think there’s an issue with our effort or the efforts of other pro teams in town…We worked closely with a bunch of different constituencies involved in trying to put together a framework for a bill that we thought would work. And we ultimately couldn’t even get that bill voted on.”
GEORGIA: “Not every bill is a Mike Trout or Reggie Jackson. Sometimes it takes a couple of kicks at the can, as is evidenced by Illinois and New York, both of which eventually passed online sports betting laws following several years of failed efforts.” https://t.co/xoBc58qaZv
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) April 6, 2022
Georgia Behind Other States on Legal Betting
A 2018 Supreme Court ruling allowed US states to legalize betting and igaming in their regions. 30+ states are trying to legalize betting, or have already.
