- Bills have been filed in the New York State Legislature to make mobile sportsbooks legal.
- Governor Andrew Cuomo would like to see a legal mobile sports betting market in New York run similar to the New York Lottery.
- The bills waiting to be heard would have mobile and internet sports wagering platforms run by casinos instead of the lottery format that the Governor is aiming for.
- Mobile Sports Betting Ny Yankees
- Legal Sports Betting In Ny
- Mobile Sports Betting Nj
- Mobile Sports Gambling Ny
NEW YORK – New mobile sports betting legislation has been filed in New York for the 2021 session but the proposal differs greatly from how Governor Andrew Cuomo would like to see the industry run. Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr. has been trying to get legal mobile sportsbooks in New York for quite some time.
He, along with Assemblyman Gary Pretlow, have come together to file Senate Bill 1183 and Assembly Bill 1257, almost mirror images of the duo’s previous bills on the topic.
There is one glaring difference within this year’s draft, as it allows for two skins per retail location rather than one. That could give New York fourteen different internet and mobile sportsbook operators doing business in the state.
New York Sports Betting General Information. Retail, or land-based, sports betting has been offered on a limited basis in New York since July 2019 as part of the 2013 Upstate New York Gaming Economic Development Act, which authorized in-person legal sports betting at four upstate casinos if federal law were ever changed to allow it. Dec 16, 2020 When mobile sports betting comes to New York, it’s likely going to be a “single-skin” state. This means that each retail sportsbook will be able to link up with a single online operator. Jan 08, 2021 In response to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Wednesday announcement that he endorses a lottery run, single-entity sports betting system, two state lawmakers filed bills Thursday calling for an open, competitive sports betting landscape with statewide mobile sports betting in which each retail sportsbook could partner with two digital platforms.
The Bill Breakdown
Since making the announcement that he is behind a legal mobile sports betting market, Governor Cuomo has taken it a step further. Instead of having an industry tethered to the casino and gambling facilities within the state of which there are seven, Cuomo would like to have an industry run through one operator similar to the New York Lottery.
NY SB 1183 and NY A 1257 tie the market to casinos instead. The bills would ask venues to pay a $12 million application fee for an online license. The GGR would come with a 12% tax where 5% of that would be earmarked for problem gambling programs. A royalty fee of 0.2% would go toward the leagues in profits which means a 5% hold by operators could result in leagues receiving a 4% cut of that revenue.
Mobile Sports Betting Ny Yankees
The proposal also requires that official league data be used for live in-game wagers offered by sportsbooks. Along with the seven locations that could open two mobile sports wagering platforms a piece, professional sports facilities could partner with casinos to have sportsbook kiosks placed at their venues.
An estimated $79 million of revenue could be made yearly through the legalization of mobile sportsbooks with this measure.
Cuomo’s Vision
Cuomo has a different, more lucrative vision for mobile and internet sports betting applications in New York. If the lottery were to run the market, the state could stand to gain much more revenue. If casinos run sportsbooks, New York would only get a piece of the action, with the bulk of profits going to the operators.
Cuomo believes that the Empire State could see as much as $500 million annually through mobile wagers and kiosks at lottery retail locations.
But this large number would mean that New Yorkers would have to bet about $20 billion a year on sporting events using these outlets to reach that revenue estimate which would be difficult but not unreasonable considering anything is possible in New York.
The sports fans they have there as well as being home to some of the top professional sports teams in the country could make that revenue figure a reality in the future.
“We want to do sports betting the way the state runs the lottery where the state gets the revenues. Many states have done sports betting, but they basically allow casinos to run their own gambling operations. That makes a lot of money for casinos, but it makes minimal money for the state and I’m not here to give the casinos a lot of money,” said Cuomo in a press conference held Wednesday, solidifying his views on the subject of legal mobile sportsbooks for public knowledge.
The New York State Legislature convened on January 6 and will adjourn for the year on June 18.
News tags: A 1257 Andrew Cuomo Assembly Bill 1257 Gary Pretlow Joseph Addabbo Jr. New York New York Lottery New York State Legislature NY SB 1183 Senate Bill 1183
Christina has been writing for as long as she can remember and does dedicated research on the newly regulated sports betting market. She comes from a family of sports lovers that engage in friendly bets from time to time. During the winter months, you can find Christina baking cookies and beating the entire staff at Mario Kart…the N64 version of course.
Written by Jared Joyce
Sport’s bettors in New York received some potential good news as Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled a plan that would legalize online and mobile sports betting statewide. Governor Cuomo’s proposal came on January 6th in response to New York’s growing budget deficit resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. The Governor’s proposal marks a stark departure from his prior position regarding online and mobile sports betting.
Since the Supreme Court’s groundbreaking 2018 decision in Murphy v. NCAA, which struck down the federal law that effectively prohibited gambling on sports in most states, New York, the District of Colombia, and 18 other states have legalized sports betting. Although sports betting is already legal in New York, it is confined to in-person betting at a handful of sportsbooks owned by Native American tribes or the four commercial casinos in the state. Under the current law, a sportsbook is the physical location inside one of the brick-and-mortar casinos where bettors go to place wagers. Should New York adopt online and mobile sports betting, bettors would be able to continue to place bets at the brick-and-mortar locations, or through online sportsbooks that would consist of a website or mobile app. The legalization of mobile and online betting would place New York in the company of 14 other states, such as neighboring New Jersey and Pennsylvania, that have already taken the step to legalize mobile and online betting.
Governor Cuomo’s Proposal
Under the proposed legislation, private operators will only be able to obtain a license from the New York State Gaming Commission if they have a partnership with one of the existing Native American or commercial casinos. The New York State Gaming Commission will “solicit bids for a small number of mobile sports wagering operators” in order to decide who will obtain a license.
Governor Cuomo stated that the state’s proposed model would allow the state to maximize revenue compared to the system’s in place in the other states that have already legalized mobile and online betting. In New Jersey, for example, there is no competitive bidding process to issue licenses, rather the online sportsbooks are tied directly to the brick-and-mortar casinos, rather than through an independent operator. According to Robert Mujica, the New York state budget director, the competitive bidding approach of the proposed model could be the difference between the state collecting $50 million and $500 million in tax revenue.
Skepticism Over the Governor’s Proposal
Governor Cuomo’s plan has been met with skepticism from both legal and gaming experts.
Legal experts are concerned that the proposal will violate the strict anti-gambling language of the New York State Constitution. The language of the State Constitution limits sports betting to the Native American and commercial casinos. In an effort to circumvent this requirement, the state is requiring operators to partner with and house the servers for online and mobile sports betting inside of the previously mentioned casinos. It is still unclear whether these requirements will satisfy the constitutional requirements.
Gaming experts have also expressed concern that New York’s proposed model would hinder the state’s ability to maximize tax revenue. Under the proposed model, Governor Cuomo said that the Gaming Commission will limit the number of licenses, known as “skins,” in the betting world, to a “small number” of operators. There is speculation that the number of skins available will be limited to one for each of the existing casinos. New York Assemblyman Gary Petrow favors a system allowing for more than one skin, arguing that just because the Gaming Commission is authorized to issue more skins, it doesn’t mean that they have to issue all of them.
One argument posed by Chris Grove, a partner at a gaming analysis firm, is that limiting the number of operators “reduces product diversity and marketing, which would lead to fewer legal wagers.” Grove favors a model with closer to 10 skins.
Matt King, the CEO of FanDuel Group, which is already authorized to operate their daily fantasy games in New York, but not their sportsbook, believes that “a model with competition among experienced operators is critical to maximizing state tax receipts.”
Legal Sports Betting In Ny
Although the current model calls for a “small” number of skins, State Senator Joe Addabbo has mirrored the sentiment of Petrow, Grove, and King, and believes that it is in the state’s best interest to institute a more expansive system. Addabbo has said that he will work across the chambers with Petrow to try and get the proposal passed, even if that means adding more skins.
Although there is dispute as to the best way for New York to implement online and mobile sports betting, there is a consensus among all parties that it will help generate much needed tax income for the state. Not only will legalization generate revenue for the state, it will provide bettors with a piece of mind that their money is safe in licensed casino, as opposed to with a bookie or illegal online site. Ultimately, the legalization of online and mobile sports betting would be a win-win for all involved.
Sources
Adam Liptak & Kevin Draper, Supreme Court Ruling Favors Sports Betting, New York Times (May, 14, 2018).
Jimmy Vielkind, Gov. Cuomo’s Plan for Mobile Sports Betting in New York Faces Questions, The Wall Street Journal (Jan. 14, 2021).
Mathew Waters, Why Single-Skin Sports Betting Could Limit Ohio, New York Markets, Legal Sports Report (Dec. 3, 2020).
Mobile Sports Betting Nj
New York Sports Betting, Legal Sports Report (last visited Jan. 27, 2021).
Mobile Sports Gambling Ny
Zachary Zagger, NY Gov. Floats Mobile Sports Betting Amid Virus’ Budget Hit, Law360 (Jan. 6, 2021).
Photo courtesy of The Wallstreet Journal