U.S. Online Gambling News - Around the Horn

Each week, news about online casino play or sports betting is abound all over the U.S. This week, we see important news coming out of California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. Let's get right to it.

California Dems Say No to Sports Betting Legislation

In the last couple of months, two sports betting initiatives made it to the California ballot for November 2022. The Tribal Sports Betting Act will be on the ballot with the support of California's Indian Tribes while the California Solutions to Homeless and Mental Health Support Act will be present with the support of the U.S. online sports betting community.

While California voters will have a shot at passing one or both initiatives, they will have to do so without the support of the California Democrat Party. In the past, the Dems have largely sided with giving exclusive sports betting rights to the Tribes. In this election cycle, they are choosing to oppose both initiatives but remain materially more negative about the California Solutions to Homeless and Mental Health Support Act.

A 2022 Sports Betting Start Looks GRim in Maine

After passing the required sports betting legislation, Maine sports bettors have been waiting for the Maine Congress to start drafting the rules that will govern said activities in the state. Yes, things have been moving very slowly.

There had been hopes that rules could be put in place by the start of the 2022 NFL regular season. That's not going to happen. As a Plan B, targeting the beginning of 2023 would put Maine sports bettors in line to wager on the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl. That too seems like a pipe dream.

Note: Some people in Congress have suggested that rules might not be in place until sometime in 2024. The new law calls for the state's four federally recognized tribes to have exclusive rights to offer mobile sports betting.

Massachusetts Close to Passing of Sports Betting Legislation

While the sports betting outlook in Maine looks cloudy, things seem to be moving in the right direction in Massachusetts. At the recent meeting of the National Council of Legislators from the Gaming States, Massachusetts representatives made clear that Congress has been moving closer to an agreement on sports betting legislation.

With separate bills going through the House and Senate, Gov. Charlie Baker is encouraged that the final framework could be in place by the end of July 2022. At least that is what he reported to the National Council of Legislators from the Gaming States.

Evolution Gaming's LIve Casino Games Soon Available in Connecticut

This week, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced that Evolution Gaming's live streaming studios in Fairfield would start providing live casino gaming content through online casino sites being manned by DraftKings and Fanduel. This is great news for online casino players who strongly prefer going face-to-face against live dealers. The list of available games should include multiple versions of blackjack, roulette, and baccarat, plus games like Casino Hold'em and Dragon Tiger.