Daniel Borjas | SportsBettingInRhodeIsland.com

Lawsuit Filed To Take Down Rhode Island Sports Betting

Daniel Borjas — Thu, 02 May 2019 19:41:00 +0000

A lawsuit was filed in response to Rhode Island legalizing mobile betting.
The suit says that sports betting needs to go to a referendum to be legalized.
All of sports betting in Rhode Island could be taken down because of this.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A lawsuit was filed on Wednesday, and it could potentially completely take down sports betting in Rhode Island.

The Details Of The Suit

The suit was orchestrated by the former chair of the Rhode Island Republican party, Brandon Bell. He helped create the lawsuit that was filed by the attorneys of Daniel S. Harrop, a doctor from Providence. Harrop filed the suit through Larisa Law and Fontaine Bell & Associates. Joseph S. Larisa posted on his Twitter account about the suit he filed to the Superior Court.

The lawsuit was filed in a response that mobile sports betting in Rhode Island was legalized. Essentially, the bill is arguing that not only is mobile sports betting unconstitutional in Rhode Island, sports betting as a whole is. This suit is challenging the legality of sports betting in Rhode Island.

Abiding By The State Constitution

Sports betting was legalized in Rhode Island thanks to Governor Gina Raimondo. She included sports betting to her state budget in 2018, which made it legal in the state. It did not legalize mobile wagering though. Because they were behind projections, lawmakers filed and passed RI SB 37 to legalize mobile sports gambling.

The basis of this lawsuit is that sports betting was never legalized by having a statewide vote. Article VI Section 22 of the Rhode Island Constitution states that expansions of gambling must be “approved by the majority of those electors voting in a statewide referendum.” This can be backed up because table games and other forms of gambling were legalized via referendum in the past.

What the lawsuit will effectively do is ask the Superior Court to declare sports betting in Rhode Island unconstitutional. That is until a statewide referendum takes place and sportsbooks are again legalized. Even though this was a response to mobile sports betting becoming legalized, both online and retail sportsbooks in Rhode Island would shut down.

The main issue that the Superior Court is going to have to deal with is how it defines sports betting. New Mexico has legal sports betting because they are defining it as Class III gaming. The challenge is whether adding sports betting is an expansion of gambling, or is it Class III gaming.

For now, sportsbooks are going to remain open. The Superior Court will hear the arguments form the plaintiffs and the defendants, who are listed as the Rhode Island Department of Administration and Rhode Island Division of Lotteries. If the plaintiffs win their case, sports betting in Rhode Island will cease to operate until a statewide referendum is held.

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Sports Betting Tax Revenue Is Falling Short

Daniel Borjas — Sun, 21 Apr 2019 19:37:00 +0000

Sports betting revenue is falling short in multiple states.
Gambling on sports is popular with high numbers of money wagered.
Only New Jersey has met its projections for sports betting.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Many states that have legalized and regulated sports betting are not meeting their revenue predictions.

Super Bowl Takes Down Rhode Island Revenue

One of the states that did not come close to their projected monthly revenue is Rhode Island. This is largely due to the fact to the Super Bowl. The state sportsbooks lost $2.35 million because many people in Rhode Island bet on the Patriots to win. Since the Patriots did in fact win, the sportsbooks lost a lot of money and that in turn affected tax revenue.

Representative William O’Brien said that the Super Bowl “hurt us tremendously” in terms of tax revenue. Rhode Island was predicted to generate $1 million a month but it instead generated about $50,000 a month. The representative is still happy because he won $100 on the game and he is a fan of the Patriots.

Other States Falling Behind

Rhode Island is not the only state having an issue keeping up with predicted sports betting revenue. West Virginia is only making one-fourth of the predicted monthly tax revenue from sports betting. Mississippi and Pennsylvania are only reaching one half of their predicted tax revenue.

There are a couple of different reasons that this could be happening. Some of the legalized states did not open all of their sportsbooks at the same time. Some sportsbooks had to delay in their opening.

Many of these states also have restrictions against mobile sports betting. This includes completely not allowing mobile sports betting, restricting mobile betting to on the casino floor, or having to go to a casino to register your mobile device.

New Jersey Is Leading The Charge

New Jersey doesn’t seem to have any of these issues. New Jersey has met its revenue predictions largely due to the fact of how the state handles online and mobile sports betting. People in New Jersey do not have to go to a casino to register their mobile device and they are allowed to bet anywhere in the state.

A report from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement said that 80% of the taxed revenue from sports betting in the state came from mobile sports betting. No other legal state does mobile sports betting as New Jersey does.

Rhode Island Is Coming Up With New Strategies

Rhode Island has expanded sports betting that will allow more people to access their sportsbooks. Governor Gina Raimondo has recently signed RI SB 37 which was made to legalize mobile sports betting in the state. Lawmakers are hoping that this would help boost tax revenue on sports betting in Rhode Island.

One of the important things to note is how mobile wagering is going to work in Rhode Island. The rule is that you must go to one of the Twin River Casino’s to register for an account for bettors to be able to use their mobile device. That is not the same as New Jersey as players can register for an account remotely. This restriction might still cut into tax revenue in Rhode Island.

There are over 20 plus states that have bills being considered to legalize and regulate sports betting. These states are studying states with legalized sports betting to see how they can get the most out of it. They may want to follow New Jersey’s example as that state has the most success in sports betting.

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Rhode Island GOP Plans To Sue Over Mobile Sports Betting

Daniel Borjas — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 19:33:00 +0000

RI SB 37 will legalize mobile betting for Rhode Island
The state’s GOP plans to sue over this bill
They claim that expanding to mobile betting should go through a voter referendum

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – This week, the Rhode Island Republican Party said that they are considering suing over mobile sports betting proposal.

Lawmakers are set to vote on RI SB 37 next week. If the bill passes the house and gets signed by Governor Gina Raimondo, it would allow for mobile and online sports betting to be allowed in Rhode Island. The GOP of Rhode Island plans to sue over this mobile wagering bill.

If the GOP of Rhode Island decides to go ahead and sue over the issue of sports betting in Rhode Island, this will most likely delay online and mobile wagering for the state.

GOP Wants The Issue To Go To The Voters

The GOP said that any issue regarding sports betting or any expansion on gambling should not be left up to lawmakers.

"We are actively looking at a lawsuit to protect the constitutional right of Rhode Islanders to approve or disapprove by referendum whether or not they want the new type of gambling in the form of sports betting in person and online in our state," said Chairman Brandon Bell of the GOP.

How Sports Betting Became Legal In The First Place

When sports betting became legal in Rhode Island, it was originally thanks to a voter referendum. Residents of the state voted in 2012 and 2016 to approve casino gambling in the state. This allowed the construction of two Class III casinos and it also included sports betting.

Then SB 2045 appeared in the State Senate and Governor Raimondo was quick to adopt the language from the bill to her budget proposal. The proposal eventually passed in mid-June and sports betting was legalized.

The Referendum Conundrum

Although there were bills voted on, residents of Rhode Island had voted to allow sports betting. The GOP is arguing that it should be left up to the voters again because of this. But, the residents have already voted on the issue so it can be argued that it was already decided by referendum to allow mobile sports betting.

Lawmakers are doing the same thing for mobile wagering just like they when they legalized sports betting. They are voting on a bill to help put in place what the voters already had decided on.

If the state’s GOP decides to go ahead and sue, these are likely going to be the two arguments that are going to play out.

Senate President Wants To Push Forward

Democratic Senate President Dominick Ruggerio said that he is shocked that the GOP would sue because mobile betting would “support lower taxes and greater individual liberties.” He is also concerned about delaying new revenue that the state needs right now.

"The revenue from sports wagering supports critical state services, like road and bridge repairs, education and human services, while offsetting reliance on taxes," said Ruggerio.

As it currently stands, the Rhode Island GOP has not yet officially sued over the issue. RI SB 37 passed in the Senate last month and it passed the House Finance Committee last week. The current plan for lawmakers is to have the full House to vote on the legislation next week. If the GOP decides to sue, then a vote on the bill could end up getting delayed.

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