Legislative Tracker: Sports Betting

States can now officially legal sports betting if they want, after the US Supreme Court struck down the federal ban on May 14.

Interest in the legalization of sports betting has ramped up in the US recent years, and that interest is sure to increase on the heels of the Supreme Court decision.

There are now a variety of bills in states around the country and even some laws on the books.

The current climate for sports betting legislation

The push for legal sports gambling got a boost as the New Jersey sports betting case gained some traction in 2017. The US Supreme Court heard the case late in 2017 and rendered a decision in 2018.

The win for New Jersey mean other states could legalize sports betting, should they choose to do so. That prospect has generated interest in several state capitols.

Some states have already started moving to change their laws with enacted legislation that either legalize wagering or set the stage to do so:

Oregon, Delaware and Rhode Island also appear to be readying for sports betting through their lotteries.

Current sports betting bills

Here is a look at bills related to sports betting in the United States:

Enacted law or existing law/regulations
Study bill
Introduced legislative effort in 2017 or 2018

State	Bill Number(s)	Bill Synopsis	Latest News
California	ACA 18	The constitutional amendment would legalize sports betting in the state, if federal law is changed to allow it.	Latest news
Connecticut	H 5307 S 540	The bill would legalize and regulate sports wagering.	Latest news
Illinois	H 4214 H 5186 S 7 S 2478 S 3125 S 3432	The bills would legalize sports wagering at existing gaming facilities.	Latest news
Indiana	S 405 H 1325	The bills would legalize sports wagering at existing gaming facilities.	Latest news
Iowa	H 2448	The bill would legalize sports wagering.	Latest news
Kansas	H 2533 H 2752 H 2792 H 2793 S 455	The bills would legalize sports betting via the lottery and/or race tracks.	Latest news
Kentucky	BR 29 BR 155 H 536	The bills would legalize and regulate sports betting	Latest news
Louisiana	H 245 S 266	The bills would legalize and regulate sports betting via a referendum.	Latest news
Maryland	S 836 HB 1346 HB 1014	The bills would legalize and regulate sports betting via a referendum.	Latest news
Massachusetts	S 2273	The bill would study the legalization and regulation of sports betting.	Latest news
Michigan	H 4060 H 4261 H 4926	The first bill would legalize sports betting via a referendum. The second would allow for parlay wagering. The final bill would legalize online sports betting, casino games and poker.	Latest news
Mississippi	H 1113 H 1154	The second bill would study tax rates for sports betting.	Latest news
Missouri	H 2320 H 2406 H 2535 S 767 S 1009 S 1013	The bills would legalize and regulate sports betting.	Latest news
New Jersey	A 3911 A 4111 S 2602	The bills would legalize sports betting at casinos and horse racing tracks.	Latest news
New York	A 11144 S 1282 S 7900 A 5438 A 10322 A 11225	The bills would legalize sports betting. (New York legalized sports betting at its commercial casinos via a referendum previously.) The last two bills would create a task force to study sports betting.	Latest news
Ohio	S 316	The placeholder bill indicates intentions to legalize sports betting.	Latest news
Oklahoma	H 3375 S 1175	Language that would legalize "sports pools" was amended out of both bills.	Latest news
Rhode Island	S 2045 H 8320 H 7200	The first two bills would legalize sports betting. The second bill is the state budget proposal, which includes similar provisions.	Latest news
South Carolina	H 3102	The bill would legalize sports betting.	Latest news
West Virginia	H 2751 S 106 S 415 H 4396	Law passed March 2018 to legalize and regulate sports betting.	Latest news
US	H 783 H 4530	The bills would allow individual states to legalize sports betting.

Previous sports betting bills

Here’s a rundown of legislation introduced prior to 2017:

2017

State	Bill Number(s)	Bill Synopsis	Latest News
California	ACA 18	The constitutional amendment would legalize sports betting in the state, if federal law is changed to allow it.	Latest news
Connecticut	H 6948	(Passed July 2017) The bill would allow regulators to prepare for legal sports betting, should state and federal law allow.	Latest news
Hawaii	H 927	The bill studies the future of gaming in Hawaii, sports betting included	Latest news
Kentucky	B 155	The bill would allow for sports betting to be regulated by the state horse racing commission, should federal law allow	Latest news
Maryland	H 989	The bill sets up a task force to study sports betting.	Latest news
Michigan	H 4060 H 4261 H 4926	The first bill would legalize sports betting via a referendum. The second would allow for parlay wagering. The final bill would legalize online sports betting, casino games and poker.	Latest news
Mississippi	H 967	(Passed 2017) As part of a fantasy sports law, language allows the state to regulate sports betting should federal law allow.	Latest news
New Jersey	S 3375	The bill would repeal the state's prohibition on sports betting	Latest news
New York	S 1282 A 5438	The bills would legalize sports betting. (New York legalized sports betting at its commercial casinos via a referendum previously.	Latest news
Oklahoma	S 857	The bill would authorize sports betting as a part of a larger package related to tribal gaming.	Latest news
Pennsylvania	H 519 H 271	(Passed Oct. 2017) The second bill -- an omnibus gaming package -- would legalize sports betting if federal law allows it.	Latest news
South Carolina	H 3102	The bill would legalize casino gambling and sports betting.	Latest news
West Virginia	H 2751	The bill would legalize sports betting.	Latest news
US	H 783	The bill would allow individual states to legalize sports betting.

2016

State	Bill Number(s)	Bill Synopsis	Status Of Bill / Latest News
California	A 1441	The bill would legalize sports betting in the state, if federal law is changed to allow it.	Introduced in September 2015. Latest news.
Delaware	S 183	The bill would expand the state's parlay card offerings online.	Introduced in January 2016.
New Jersey	Bill became law in 2014, but is pending a legal challenge.	The bill allows sports betting in the state at casinos and racetracks.	The law is not in effect, as a court injunction has held up implementation. The case is being appealed. Latest news.
New York	S 940	The bill would legalize sports betting.	The bill was introduced in 2016 and referred to the attorney general for an opinion. No further action was taken.
Pennsylvania	HR 619	The bill would legalize and regulate sports betting in the state.	The bill passed a committee hearing in 2016.

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Dustin Gouker - Dustin Gouker has been a sports journalist for more than 15 years, working as a reporter, editor and designer -- including stops at The Washington Post and the D.C. Examiner.