Could Sports Betting in Minnesota Become a Reality in 2023

Towards the end of 2022, it was starting to look like there was a viable chance for Minnesota sports betting legislation to truly take hold. The legislation came in the form of House File 778, which managed to get through eight (8) committees while guided by House Rep. Zach Stephenson. Stephenson did all the hard work in working with the state’s 11 Native Indian Tribes to come up with acceptable guidelines.

After the File passed the House by a vote of 70-57, it tragically was sent to the Senate where it died. The Senate said no because of objection to giving the Indian Tribes exclusive rights to offer sports betting access to the state’s residents. The problem was the Senate was already circulating a competing bill that would call for the state’s Tribal Nation to share sports betting responsibilities with three (3) major racetracks, those tracks being Running Aces Casino, Hotel & Racetrack in Columbus and Canterbury Park in Shakopee.

As is the case in Florida where the Seminole Tribe is supposed to have exclusive rights over all forms of casino and sports gambling, Minnesota’s Tribes have similar agreements. To pass any share sports betting legislation would require the creation of a new compact and approval by the House and Senate.

Moving Ahead to 2023

With the legislation presented in 2022 all but dead, lawmakers will have to start from scratch if they still want to pursue sports betting legislation. It’s absolutely something Minnesota residents want. It’s also some the Minnesota Indian nation is supporting, something they didn’t support until mid-2022.

In order for anything to pass, the Tribes and racetrack are going to have to reach a compromise. They got close in 2022 when the race tracks stated they would give exclusive sports betting rights to the Indian Tribes if the state legislature would give both Indian and race track casinos the ability to expand casino offerings to include craps and roulette. The compromise hit a glitch when several Tribes decided the deal was a go-go.

Moving into 2023, sports betting legislation will face a new legislature that is now led by the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which gained control over the Governor’s mansion and both chambers. It’s worth noting that prior support for sports betting was led by the GOP, which is now in the minority.

That doesn’t mean the idea of sports betting is dead in the state. From his position now in the minority, Stephenson is again expected to present sports betting legislation. HE remains optimistic about the chances of getting something done in the House because the Dems only have a slim margin of one (1) seat.

Still, success is going to come down to one thing. That will be the willingness of the Tribal Nation and the state’s horse racing industry to reach an accord. It has become increasingly clear the Senate will not touch the issue until they know both of these parties are going to be on board with some reasonable legislation. More information could become available in the coming weeks.