Sports betting in Ohio was the subject of a state Senate hearing, but no vote was taken on the measure.
Representatives from six major operators and industry group iDEA Growth submitted written testimony supporting legalizing online sports betting, but there was little public comment and no vote on the measure, according to reports.
Ohio’s legislature has been given until the end of the year to adopt a bill. The hearing was the third on legal sports betting by the committee.
According to CDC Gaming Reports, Ohio’s legislators favor statewide mobile sports betting, but there have been disagreements over what state agency should regulate sports betting and the tax rate.
The state Senate favors the state’s Casino Control Commission and the House favors the Ohio Lottery to regulate online sports betting. The current bill sets the casino commission as regulator and sets the tax rate at 8 percent, down from 10 percent.
Operators submitted testimony saying that online sports betting would provide revenue to the state now going to surrounding states that offer online gaming as well as unlicensed sites.
“Ohio residents currently have convenient access to illegal, unregulated mobile sports wagering sites such as Bovada and others,” wrote MGM International in written testimony. “However, they lack a legal, properly regulated alternative. Restricting a legal mobile market will not compel people into brick-and-mortar facilities or prevent them from wagering on sports; it will merely keep people on the existing black market.”
There are only six state House sessions and four state Senate sessions left in the calendar year for the bill to advance before the state sits a new legislature.
