Voters Will Decide the Fate of Sports Betting in Louisiana

The sports betting bill in Louisiana finally gets the signature of Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards. Senate Bill 130, however, does not mean an automatic legalization of sports betting in the state. In fact, the provision of the bill states that voters will decide the fate of sports betting in Louisiana. Now called Act No. 215, the sports betting bill will be subject to a voting of the 64 parishes if they want sports betting in their areas.

Sports Betting in Louisiana

If the vote favors allowing sports betting, the ball will go back to legislators. They will need to come up with regulations, tax rates, and if they will allow online betting, similar to what you would see in an online casino platform. And if we will go by the state’s history in approving gambling-related bills, the process could take a year or two.

Daily Fantasy Sports, a very popular online bookie software product, took 2 years to formalize after being voted in last 2018. Finalizing regulations as well as the tax rate took quite a while. We only saw regulations for this signed by Governor Edwards just last week.

Voting on Sports Betting

Louisiana will not be the only state that will have sports betting in the ballot this November. Maryland and South Dakota will also be voting in on whether they will allow sports betting in their state. California may also join their list.

The coronavirus has caused a lot of damage to the economy. And the income that states can gain from taxes on gambling revenues can come a long way to help each state’s budget deficits. Hopefully, legislation on industries that can easily generate income can move faster. And, as those who want to learn how to be a bookie know, sports betting can generate a lot of revenue for everyone involved.