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New York Betting Laws Still A Work In Progress, Say Officials
Chair of the State Senate Gaming Committee, Joe Addabbo, acknowledged that the existing legislation was imperfect and incomplete as things stand, and would benefit from some tweaks in the near future.
“I always said the first variation of mobile sports betting in New York won’t be the last”, said Addabbo, going on to add that the upcoming Kentucky Derby had highlighted another issue with the existing legislation. The classic horse race always sees a lot of money staked, but New Yorkers cannot currently bet on racing using the same platforms they use for sportsbook gaming, an oversight the Chair described as “ridiculous”.
While some tweaks to the present laws are expected to take until 2023, many of the necessary modifications could be done before the end of this year’s congressional session. This would mean that NY-based betting platforms could take bets on events like the Grammys and Oscars, offer Super Bowl prop bets on such markets as the color of Gatorade to be poured over the winning coach, and bets on the Draft.
Tweaks like the above are broadly uncontroversial and are likely to pass with little to no opposition in the Senate. More complicated tinkering which may need to wait for a new session includes the expansion of iGaming, allowing bettors in the state to place money on Poker and Blackjack, as well as table games like Roulette and casino slots.
Addabbo stated of the iGaming changes: “That’s a bigger conversation for probably next year’s budget because of its fiscal impact to the state”, but went on to add that the current state governor Kathy Hochul had shown a lot more willing to accommodate gaming reform than the previous incumbent Cuomo administration.
Betting has been allowed in the state since early 2019, with sports betting online only becoming legal in January of this year. In light of these most recent remarks, however, it seems clear that there is plenty of willing to work on the legislation until it makes sense to bettors, providers and legislators alike.
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