State of Ohio flags waving in front of the Statehouse in Columbus, OH

Ohio House passes sports betting legislation

The state of Ohio has taken a step towards bringing legal sports betting to the state.

The Ohio House of Representatives has passed a bill that would legalise land-based and online sports wagering in the state of Ohio.

The proposed legislation, HB 194, was first introduced by State Representatives Dave Greenspan and Brigid Kelly in April 2019.

Yesterday (28 May), the Ohio House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 83-10. The bill will now move to the Senate for further consideration.

What the bill covers

The bill, which was debated for more than a year before being passed by the House yesterday, would allow the Ohio Lottery Commission to take responsibility for regulating the state’s sports betting market.

When it comes to mobile betting, the bill permits certain veteran’s and fraternal organizations to offer on-site wagering through an approved vendor.

Operators hoping to serve the state will need to secure a sports gaming agent license. Only casino operators or a video lottery sales agent will be permitted to apply for a sports gaming agent license. According to the bill, the application fee will be set at non-refundable $100,000.

Operators can renew their license for a fee of $100,000 or 1% of their gross sports betting receipts for the previous year, whichever is less.

License holders will be subject to a tax rate of 10% on sports betting receipts. Funds generated from regulated sports betting activities would be used to support elementary, secondary vocational, and special education programs in the state of Ohio.

More gambling expansion in Ohio

Ohio’s House also voted to approve HB 282 yesterday. This piece of proposed legislation would make it legal for a charitable organization in the state to operate electronic bingo machines.

The bill passed by a vote of 91-2 and would expand the state’s gambling laws to allow charities to offer electronic bingo games alongside their paper ones.

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