A legislative analysis has predicted that legalized sports betting has the potential to generate $15 million in tax revenue for the state of Missouri each year.
House Bill 1666 was analyzed, and the findings will be discussed in a proposal to legalize sports betting in the state in a House committee this week.
All in all, the House Committee on Public Policy is due to hear three different sports betting bills, in a new push to finally legalize and regulate the market in the Show Me State.
Despite the fact that all the professional teams in Missouri have reached an agreement with land casinos to legalize sports betting, it has been disagreements in the Legislature which have stalled efforts so far.
It has not been for lack of trying that Missouri hasn’t yet joined the 32 other states which allow some form of sports waging.
Since 2019, more than 20 bills have been filed, however none of them have successfully reached the final stretch.
Proponents of legal sports betting in Missouri want to make the state competitive with other surrounding states and benefit from the gambling dollars that such an industry will drum up.
Last year, new Jersey brought in nearly $50 million in tax revenue, while Pennsylvania collected $38.7 million in 2020.