Mississippi Online Sports Betting Bill Advances After Statute Modified
- 31 Jan 2025
- Gambling News
In Mississippi, to make a legal sports wager, bettors are required to go to a casino or riverboat. This week, legislation permitting online betting progressed in the capital of Jackson.
On January 20, Rep. Casey Eure (R-Harrison) along with his cosponsor, Rep. Jeffrey Hulum III (D-Harrison), presented House Bill 1302. The law known as the Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act would enable the state’s existing gaming license holders to explore online sportsbook options.
This week, HB1302 cleared the House Gaming Committee, chaired by Eure and including Hulum. The legislation would permit every casino to collaborate with a maximum of two online sportsbooks, or skins. No sportsbook would be permitted to function online without a physical location partnership.
"I am committed to the brick-and-mortar casinos and this bill mandates that all sports betting is tethered to brick-and-mortar casinos,” Eure said.
Last year, after a comparable online sports betting proposal gained House backing, Eure’s measure failed in the Senate due to fears that online sports betting could negatively impact physical casinos, as sports bettors would no longer need to visit the gaming floors in person.
Mississippi Sports Wagering Safety Measure
Last year, senators expressed concerns that introducing online sportsbooks could place smaller, regional casinos at a greater competitive disadvantage.
Certain members of the upper chamber anticipated that sportsbook giants such as FanDuel and DraftKings would collaborate with the state’s major casinos, especially those along the Gulf such as MGM Resorts’ Beau Rivage. If that were to occur, Mississippi’s online sports betting sector would mainly benefit the casinos that currently hold the majority of the state's gaming market.
To address those concerns, Eure and Hulum state that their revised online sports betting legislation now incorporates the creation of the Retail Sports Wagering Protection Fund. The fund will receive $6 million annually, funded by taxes from online sports betting.
At the conclusion of each year, casinos without an online sportsbook may seek compensation if their physical sports betting earnings fall below those of 2024, prior to the launch of online betting platforms. The Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC) would distribute the funds proportionally among qualified casinos.
A suggested 12% levy on online sportsbook earnings would mainly support the state’s Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund. Every one of the 82 counties would get yearly allocations for infrastructure initiatives.
State projections indicate that Mississippi is losing between $40 million and $80 million annually by prohibiting online sports wagering. Numerous gamblers in Mississippi are now making their online wagers in adjacent states that permit mobile betting, such as Louisiana, Arkansas, and Tennessee.
Worries About Sports Betting Addiction
This year’s online sports wagering legislation in Mississippi includes measures aimed at reducing problematic gambling. The employment of credit cards has been limited, although this scenario might provoke some resistance from conservatives who argue that the state government should not act as a “nanny state” and dictate how a consumer engages in a regulated market.
The legislation would mandate that licensed online sportsbooks utilize player data and technology to help identify possible problem gamblers, employ “automated triggers” to oversee and manage the accounts of these individuals, and implement “levels of intervention and education” to recognize at-risk bettors.
