Sports Betting Tax Revenue Is Falling Short

  • 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.

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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