Anatomy of Fallen Online Sports Betting Legislation in Mississippi

For the first time in three years, it looked like online sports betting legislation had a strong chance of getting past the Mississippi House and Senate. Unfortunately, fate dealt a cruel blow at the last legislative moment, putting online sports betting on the back burner until 2025. 

House Bill HB774 Stalls in the Senate

Hopes were high that online sports betting would become a reality in Mississippi in February 2024. That's when the House passed House Bill HB774 by a vote of 97-14. When it got to the Senate, the bill stalled as legislators got caught up in the concerns brought by the state's retail casino community. 

Mississippi is home to 26 retail casinos that rest along the banks of the Mississippi River and Gulf Coast. Clearly, the land-based casino community wields a lot of power in the state due in large part to the tax revenue they throw into the state's coffers. It turns out they are a bit uneasy about sharing revenue with online sports betting concerns that may or may not be under their control. Note: Most land-based casinos have retail sportsbooks, which are permitted by law.

Over the two months that the Senate sat on the bill, they sought ways to carve the existing bill up to suit their needs. They settled on submitting the Senate Bill SB2780, which would have given existing retail casinos protection against the licensing of more competition in the future. 

As the current legislative session concluded at the end of April, the promise of online sports betting effectively got kicked down the road into 2025. This prompted House Gaming Committee Chair Rep. Casey Eure to tell PlayUSA reporters:

“I think the Senate just didn’t have an appetite for mobile sports betting, which is a shame because we’re losing millions to illegal sites. I believe this is something Mississippians want. In my 14 years in the legislature, I’ve never gotten more calls on any issue than for mobile sports betting. And I never got a single phone call with someone opposing.”

House and Senate Can't Find Compromised

After the Mississippi State Senate passed a stripped-down HB774, the two chambers formed a committee to further online sports betting discussions. Unfortunately, it was to no avail as the Senate refused to compromise on the following points:

• Gambling account funding by credit cards would be prohibited


• Two years of in-person account registration would be mandated


• The legal age for participating in Daily Fantasy Sports would be increased from 18 to 21


• A proposed launch date of January 9, 2025, would be moved to July 1, 2025


• Additional consumer protection verbiage would need to be created
  

After Rep. Eure responded with a counter-proposal that agreed to no credit card account funding and a 90-day in-person registration process, it became clear a compromise would not be in the cards.

Amid this bad news is some good news. There is every reason to believe that online sports betting legislation will get serious consideration next year. That remains to be seen.