Tag: tribal casino

Get a Grip: The Week in Sports Betting & Sports: SVP, G2E & New Mexico’s a ‘Go’

Posted on | by Jill Dorson

It’s information overload everywhere, and there’s not time enough to sleep and eat and stay fully apprised of what’s happening on this crazy blue dot of ours (two out of three ain’t bad).

Here’s the weekend Sports Handle item, “Get a Grip,” recapping the week’s top stories, and rounding up key stories in sports betting, gaming, and the world of sports at large. You may have missed them, and they are worth reading.

SVP: Legal Sports Betting Just ‘Common Sense’

ESPN personality Scott Van Pelt didn’t pussyfoot around his thoughts on sports betting at the Global Gaming Expo (G2E) in Las Vegas earlier this week. Nope, the sometimes irreverent, always hip late-night sports jock just said it like it is on why sports betting should be legal.

“Because I have common sense,” he said in answer to a question from the American Gaming Association’s Sara Slane, per CDC Gaming Reports. “I live in a state (Connecticut) where I can buy lottery tickets at a gas station, go to a casino and play blackjack, but I can’t bet on the Red Sox or the Yankees? People bet. They are adults. I’m in favor of adults doing adult things.”

Van Pelt shared his thoughts on how fast states across the nation would legalize sports betting — “Maybe six months, a year, we’ll get to a point where everyone, even grandma, is out on the dance floor.” And if that would compromise the integrity of games — “You have to be vigilant. You have to be concerned, but you just can’t listen to the conspiracy theorists and the idiots on Twitter”.

 

Read more Get a Grip: The Week in Sports Betting & Sports: SVP, G2E & New Mexico’s a ‘Go’  on SportsHandle.

Arizona Must Consider Tribes When Crafting Sports Betting Law

Posted on | by Jill Dorson

The post Arizona Must Consider Tribes When Crafting Sports Betting Law appeared first on SportsHandle.

Arizona lawmakers are finding themselves in a pinch similar to other states — it’s slow going on the sports betting front because of existing tribal compacts with Indian gaming interests. Arizona hasn’t made any real progress on sports betting this year, and part of the reason is what’s often referred to as the “poison pill” that states dealing with tribal compacts must consider.

In Arizona’s case, according to a recent report from the Bloomberg, the state would lose significant revenue should it introduce sports betting without reworking the tribal pacts. The state has deals with more than 20 tribes, each of which pay the state a tax of up to 8 percent — which translates into about $80 million annually — on gaming revenue. From the Bloomberg story, Stephen Hart, who practices Indian and gaming law, said Arizona would be hard-pressed to pass a sports betting law that would allow the state or commercial interests to offer sports betting, but not the local tribes.

The current gaming compact dates to 2002 and was approved by voters. Tribal leaders are open to adding sports betting to their repertoire and working with the state to hammer out an agreement.

AZ Sports Betting Law Would Have to Include Reworking Tribal Pacts.

“We are looking forward to discussing with the state how we can go about working together on developing this opportunity, which could be a win/win for the state of Arizona and Arizona tribes,” Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the Gila River Indian community told 12 News in May.

But working with tribes is tricky, as lawmakers in Connecticut, Michigan and many other states are learning. In Connecticut, outgoing governor Dannel Malloy was pushing for a special session to legalize sports betting, but put that on the back burner after failing to come to an agreement with the state’s two Indian tribes. In Michigan, Representative Brandt Iden, who was hoping to move quickly with sports betting legislation, tabled much of the discussion for the summer so he could focus on negotiating with the state’s tribes.

Of the six states that have legalized sports betting to date, only Mississippi has tribal gaming, but the tribes do not have any relationship with the state’s gaming commission.

The Arizona legislature has considered sports betting and daily fantasy in past sessions, but neither has gained much traction.

The post Arizona Must Consider Tribes When Crafting Sports Betting Law appeared first on SportsHandle.