Pennsylvania has seen an amendment of the proposed HB 271 – a bill that would make online gambling in the state legal. The state’s Senate passed the bill with vote of 38 to 12 and gave it opportunity to move forward to the House of Representatives. The latter, on its turn, is very likely to take up the proposed piece of legislation and amend it in June.
As we have previously, the bill includes a number of provisions that would change the gambling in the state, as online gambling would probably be made legal in the state. This puts Pennsylvania one step closer to finally authorizing online gambling across the state. In addition, the addition of online gambling legislation could bring Pennsylvania revenue of hundreds of millions of dollars over the upcoming years.
The HB 271 bill also seeks to authorize online lottery games and to regulate daily fantasy sports. It is also aimed at regulate tax rates and other issues related to online gambling operations in the state.
However, the situation with the online gambling bill of Pennsylvania is not all roses, because the ones hoping to generate massive revenue in the state would have to deal with some of the highest taxes and fees imposed on operators and casinos. Under the provisions of the HB 271 bill, online casino operators would have their revenue taxed at a rate amounting to 54%. This is the same tax rate imposed on the land-based slot machines. Online poker, on the other hand, is planned to be taxed at a 16% tax rate.
The amendment of the bill was made on the Senate floor on Wednesday, but the bill hardly saw any material changes that are to affect online gaming. Online poker licenses are worth $5 million, and online casino licenses are estimated to the same amount of money.
It is still unknown how many operators would apply for an iGaming license. Some of them have already revealed that they would probably not sign up for such a license in case that the tax rate remains too high. On the other hand, too high fees and tax rates could end up bringing less money to the state of Pennsylvania, while at the same time the black iGaming market there could be made more sustainable.
The state of Pennsylvania has been seeking to make online gambling legal for some time now. This is likely to be the first successful attempt of the state to pass online gambling legislation. Last year, the Pennsylvania House passed bills seeking to authorise online poker and online casinos, but they failed to find the necessary support and become laws.
At this stage, it is still unclear whether the House would automatically authorise the Senate version of the bill, especially considering the fact it has previously considered and approved online gambling tax rates that have been far more reasonable for the one implemented in the bill by the State. On the other hand, it is quite possible for the House to amend the bill to lower tax rate. Hopefully, Pennsylvania is approaching the moment when it would be finally given its iGaming legislation and desired gambling expansion.
- Author
Daniel Williams
