Lawmakers have introduced new legislation to expand Connecticut’s gambling market.
Connecticut lawmakers have introduced new legislation that would legalise sports betting and online gambling in the state.
This comes after Connecticut’s Governor Ned Lamont came out in support of the legalisation of sports betting last week.
New legislation
The new legislation, SB 146 which is titled “An Act Authorizing Sports Wagering, Internet Gaming, Internet Lottery And Internet Keno” was introduced earlier this week and was sponsored by 17 lawmakers across both political parties.
The bill has been referred to the legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Safety and Security for further consideration.
Under the legislation, the state’s two Native American tribes that offer gambling activities, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe and the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut, would be permitted to offer sports betting both online and at their casinos. In Addition to this, the state lottery would be able to sell lottery tickets online and offer keno games.
The proposed legislation did not provide detail on how these activities would be conducted, regulated or taxed. However, the bill does that that “reasonable procedures and data security standards for Internet gaming” would be provided and the new verticals would be implemented to generate revenue for the state.
Governor supports sports betting
Last week during his State of the State address, Connecticut’s governor explained that 2020 had been an incredibly “challenging and humbling” period due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In the announcement, Lamont said Connecticut would work with its neighbouring states to “modernize” gaming in the state as well as the legislature to legalise marijuana.
Lamont said: “Sports betting, internet gaming, and legalized marijuana are happening all around us. Let’s not surrender these opportunities to out-of-state markets or even worse, underground markets.”
