For the second straight year, a proposal to expand the Rhode Island sports betting market is through the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Frank Ciccone’s expansion legislation, SB 3118, passed the Senate Thursday. Ciccone sponsored a similar bill last year, but the House did not take up the Senate-approved proposal.
It now heads to the House. The session ends June 30.
While the Senate leader is hopeful the market can open up, Rhode Island Lottery Director Mark Furcolo said it is “likely unconstitutional.” The Lottery runs the state’s sports betting system, including the IGT-powered Sportsbook Rhode Island. Providence-based Bally’s received a second license through the lottery earlier this year.
Rhode Island sports betting proposal
The legislation would allow for between four and six new online gambling operators in the state. If passed, the Lottery would open an invitation to applicants for sports betting contracts on Jan. 1, 2027.
The proposal also changes the revenue sharing portion of the sports betting law, sending 40.5% of revenue to the operators, up from 32%. The state takes 51% of the revenue, while the two host facilities receive 8.5%.
The tax rate changes after the state receives the total of sports betting taxes paid in fiscal 2025. After that, operators receive 79.5% of the revenue, with the state taking 12%. Ciccone said the expansion would help keep bettors in the state and increase tax revenue.
“Other states that have had multiple apps have brought in more revenue,” Ciccone said. “Now we have quite a few people going over the line into Massachusetts and Connecticut to utilize the other apps.”
RI Lottery opposition
The Lottery launched a request for qualifications in 2025, after choosing to find a second partner when the IGT partnership exclusivity ends this fall. It ultimately chose Bally’s over Rush Street Interactive’s BetRivers.
Both the Lottery and IGT are opposing the expansion proposal.
“Neither the Lottery nor the sports wagering market is able to support more sports wagering vendors given Rhode Island’s unique Constitutional framework,” Furcolo wrote in a testimony. “Requiring that more contracts be awarded than can be supported by the Rhode Island Lottery will negatively impact operations and related player protections.”
Rhode Island sports betting history
While it is the smallest state in the union, Rhode Island was one of the first markets with sports betting the U.S., launching in November 2018.
Since launch, RI sports bettors have wagered more than $3 billion. The state has collected $134 million in taxes.
Rhode Island became the seventh state to launch online casino in 2024. Bally’s operates that platform.
