Over the last few years, a number of US states have put their efforts in presenting local legislature with new gambling bills mostly aimed at making online gambling legal. The latter, however, has not really been part of Illinois’ agenda until 2017.
Now, two bills related to online gambling legislation have been introduced in the state of Illinois. According to some rumours in local media, the proposed pieces of gambling legislation are not very likely to get the green light from the competent authorities, but still, there is still a chance for them to change the bigger picture, despite the fact that the state politics in the state of Illinois has always been somehow unstable.
Experts say there are two bills that could have a chance to give online gambling a way in the state of Illinois. The first one is SB 208, which is currently in the Senate. The bill seeks an amendment to make online gambling legal in the state. It is still unknown what the fate of the bill will be, as its chances to pass further and became law are still questionable. The Bill offers an online gambling licensing fee estimated to $10 million, as well as a base tax rate on gross gaming revenue amounting to 15%.
Another bill, called SB 1805, has also been considered as one of the pieces of legislation that still have chance to be passed in the state of Illinois. The proposed piece of legislation is pretty much identical to the afore-mentioned one. That bill, except for the online gambling part, is currently in the House after getting the approval of the Senate.
Illinois has also been seeking to make legal and regulate daily fantasy sports. The S 1667 bill that is focused on DFS does not include online gambling provisions, but it is considered to have better chances to get legislature’s approval before the ending of the current legislative session. The state has been seeking to make daily fantasy sports legal for some time now, but the proposed bills have not yet become law.
Despite the fact that the fate of online gambling is still unknown in the state of Illinois, its regulation could bring the state massive revenues in the years to come. The eventual regulated gambling market of the state could generate revenues of over $1.50 billion over the first five years after online gambling operations are made legal. The total tax revenue, excluding fees, that could be generated in Illinois is expected to increase over the first five years, reaching almost $40 million over the fifth year.
What is more, if legalised and regulated in the state of Illinois, online gambling could lead to the immediate addition of no less than $130 million of a tax prepayment made by companies that apply for an operating license.
- Author
Daniel Williams
