- Ohio, Massachusetts, Kansas, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Missouri could see legalized sports betting by 2022.
- Each state listed could see millions in annual tax revenue from regulated sports betting.
LAS VEGAS - More than 20 states have launched sports betting operations in the past three years, and it has been very profitable for them. Although there are many states in the process of opening their sports betting operations, six in particular could see it regulated as early as 2022.
But just how much tax revenue do these states stand to gain from sports betting?
Projected Tax Benefits From Future Sports Betting States
- Ohio Population: 11.69 million Tax Revenue: 103.5 million
- Massachusetts Population: 7.1 million Tax Revenue: 71.1 million
- Kansas Population: 2.95 million Tax Revenue: 15.4 million
- South Carolina Population: 5.2 million Tax Revenue: 45.8 million
- Kentucky Population: 4.47 million Tax Revenue: 35.2 million
- Missouri Population: 6.16 million Tax Revenue: 30.8 million
How These Projections Were Generated
All state tax revenue projections were based on a North Carolina survey on sports betting. The survey showed that 32% of polled residents would bet on sports.
We averaged this to if 25% of each state's population were to gamble on sports. We then took the average weekly betting handle from the survey, and extrapolated that for a full year's worth of betting to obtain a projected handle.
Using a 5% hold from the handle to project the average sportsbook revenue, the tax rate was calculated according to each state's sports betting bills or most recent attempted legislative effort.
For states without a stated sports betting tax rate, an 11% tax rate was used, which is comparable to many early sports betting states.
Where States Stand With Future Sports Betting Laws
Ohio
While Ohio already has licensed online sportsbook options for bettors, a fully realized sportsbook operation could greatly benefit Ohio with its potential increase in tax revenue.
The Ohio Senate recently passed SB-176 to regulate sports betting which now awaits a House hearing.
Massachusetts
Although popular sportsbook provider DraftKings hails from Massachusetts, sports betting still has yet to be regulated though not from lack of effort.
Massachusetts has gone through nearly 30 bills attempting to regulate sports betting, with the most recent House Bill 70 being pushed by Governor Baker himself.
Kansas
Several attempts have been made to legalize sports betting in Kansas in the past two years only to fail.
Most recently Senate Bill 84 died in State Affairs Committee. However, the attempts and conversations regarding regulating sports betting in Kansas continue to grow.
Kentucky
Legislation was introduced to regulate sports betting in both 2020 and 2021. Both times however the sessions did not give enough time to fully consider the proposals.
Kentucky Lawmakers remain interested in seeing passage to regulate sports betting in 2022.
Missouri
There were high hopes to see regulated sports betting back in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic caused a temporary halt on conversations.
Since then, however, several different bills are being considered to see sports wagering by 2022.
South Carolina
While initially being very opposed to gambling or sports betting, South Carolina lawmaker's recent conversations regarding the topic have shifted in a positive light.
Despite three bills failing to go through in 2019, discussions surrounding the potential financial benefits of regulated sports betting continue to grow.