Ohio Going Backwards with Sports Betting Legalization

Ohio took a massive blow to legalize sports betting on Election Day. As Louisiana, Maryland, and South Dakota all passed its sports betting bills, Ohio lost three key members backing sports betting.

Sen. John Eklund, co-sponsor of HB194 was termed out of office, while Rep. Dave Greenspan and Sen. Sean O’Brien lost their respective races on Tuesday. Greenspan was a primary sponsor of the bill.

Ohio still has a chance to pass HB194 in the November and December sessions, but it will be more difficult to pass without its key sponsors. If it cannot pass by the end of the year, then the bill might have to start over. This would be a major blow to passing sports betting in Ohio.

The Next Steps with HB194

Despite losing three key backers, the sports betting bill can still be passed before the end of the year. However, Senate President Larry Obhof sets the Senate’s agenda and is non in favor of legalizing sports betting. This could hurt backers if sports betting does not get on the agenda, or the timing of when discussions will occur are inconvenient.

Also, the Buckeye State sees spikes in COVID-19 cases, which could end legislative sessions early if cases get too high. If sports betting is towards the bottom of the agenda, then there is a chance that it does not get discussed before the year it out.

Despite the turnover in Ohio, everyone backing HB194 will continue without three sponsors. There is even a chance that new faces could back the sports betting bill as well, helping generate a better chance of passing. The next eight weeks will be key for HB194.

What Would Ohio Sports Betting Look Like?

There were some recent changes to the bill. The biggest one was that casinos and racetracks in the state would only be allowed two operators per location, which is down from three before the changes occurred. This means only 22 sports betting operators will be able to enter the state instead of 33.

Renewing a license also just got more expensive. After originally being a $1,000 renewal fee, it is not $10,000 to renew a sports betting license. Sports betting will still be taxed at an 8% rate and have a five-year $100,000 fee to operate in the state. Ohio will also not madnatate official league data.

The changes are interesting to pay attention to as it could swing some lawmakers to be for or against the bill. This should help the state bring in more revenue, even if they are reducing 11 spots.

Why Ohio Needs to Pass HB194

As Michigan gets ready to launch online sports betting, Ohio will only have one neighboring state that has not legalized sports betting.

The Buckeye State is surrounded by Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, and four of the five states have legalized sports betting outside of Kentucky.

Ohio will continue to lose out on gaming revenue as people of the state will drive across the border to a state with legal sports betting to place bets. Backers of HB194 will make sure this is brought up during sessions so everyone knows how much the state is losing and how much they can gain from passing the bill before 2020 is over.

Sponsors of the bill will need to work quickly to make sure they have a plan in place to get HB194 through the state.