Any calendar year brings a slew of noteworthy changes in the ever-evolving U.S. gaming industry, and 2024 was no different. We rounded up some of the biggest-ticket gambling legislation we saw over the last 12 months.
Because we don’t have 5,000 words to waste, we won’t go into detail on all of the numerous bills and proposals that died or hit quicksand during 2024. In short, we saw various attempts at expanding either iGaming or online sports betting stall this year, including online casino bills in New Jersey, Maryland, Ohio and Wyoming and sports wagering legislation in Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Minnesota, Mississippi and Nebraska.
Some states did approve expanded gaming
While many expansion pushes died, we did see some significant movement in certain parts of the country.
In July, D.C.’s online sports betting market opened up to allow several big-name operators to join the party. What was previously a monopoly on district-wide gaming held by first GambetDC and then briefly by FanDuel was transformed into a competitive multi-operator market that now features DraftKings, Caesars, BetMGM and Fanatics.
Also in July, Massachusetts legalized online lottery when Gov. Maura Healey signed the measure into law. The result of a years-long push, Massachusetts Lottery Executive Director Mark Bracken said he hopes the online platform will be ready in late 2025. The platform is set to offer einstant games as well as typical draw game tickets.
And, of course, Missouri legalized sports betting by the skin of its teeth in November’s election. Amendment 2 passed by less than 3,000 votes to make Missouri the 39th regulated sports wagering state after a record-breaking campaign funded to the tune of $40 million by FanDuel and DraftKings.
Meanwhile, “cannibalization” remained a buzzword. The increasing revenue generated by online casino markets, as well as a range of studies producing all manner of conclusions about the impact iGaming has on land-based casinos, saw the debate roar back to life in 2024. Expect more of the same in 2025.
lllinois’ revamped tax structure met pushback
Given that revenue potential is a core argument for any state’s online gaming expansion, tax rates continued to spark discussions.
The biggest movement on that front in 2024 came with lllinois’ new progressive rate which taxes gaming operators based on their adjusted gross revenue. The sliding scale ranges from 20% to 40%; that high mark, levied on AGR above $200 million, is nearly triple the previous flat rate of 15% and made Illinois’ tax ceiling lower than only New York’s notorious 51% rate.
That proposal drew strong ire from the Sports Betting Alliance (SBA), a coalition of FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Fanatics, before it was signed into law and was still being criticized by FanDuel parent Flutter’s CEO Peter Jackson months after it had been implemented.
Other states’ lawmakers have also proposed changes to gaming taxes, varying from a New Jersey attempt to double rates to a failed attempt in Massachusetts to raise tax for online sportsbooks from 20% to 51%. The year ended with the Ohio sports betting author attempting to reverse the 2023 increase from 10% to 20%, while a proposal in Michigan to fractionally increase rates saw SBA members urge their users not to play ball.
Some states met call to action on college props
Another issue that had the industry talking through the year, and which saw decisive action in some corners, related to college sports wagering.
After NCAA President Charlie Baker called for states to ban prop wagers on athletes’ performance, the likes of Louisiana, Ohio, Vermont and Maryland all took steps to limit those betting markets.
Others, such as the new betting state of North Carolina, have considered following suit. New Jersey lawmakers advanced legislation this fall that aims to completely ban college player props, and the Garden State has also mooted banning partnerships between higher education institutions and sportsbooks.
The big picture heading into 2025
Of course, no review of 2024 in gambling legislation would be complete without reflecting on Rep. Paul Tonko and Sen. Richard Blumenthal‘s SAFE Bet Act, detailed by the politicians in September.
The proposal would let states continue to oversee sports betting but implement a federal framework that covers everything from advertising to affordability checks to AI technology. The federal legislation quickly faced pushback from industry trade organizations, leaders, spokespeople and sports leagues.
Finally, while not a piece of actual legislation itself, the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States (NCLGS) published its full draft model legislation for iGaming in late November. The aim is to give state lawmakers a blueprint to follow when introducing or amending online gambling bills. The NCGLS’ recommendations include a tax rate of 15 to 25%, an explicit definition of and restriction on sweepstakes casinos, fast-tracking iGaming licenses for existing sportsbooks, mandatory player health programs and a prohibition on accepting payments by credit card.
A vote on the model legislation is expected in early 2025 after an industry comment period. If it’s adopted in the new year, it could play a significant role in shaping the next steps of online gambling nationwide.
