Missouri Sports Betting Legislation in Limbo

As the country heads into the fall, several state legislatures are trying to get sports betting legislation on the books by the end of the year. That would allow certain state residents to perhaps be allowed to wager on next year’s Super Bowl. Unfortunately, it looks like signed sports betting might have to wait for another day in Missouri.

Missouri Say No to Special Session Consideration for Sports Betting Legislation

A special session of the Missouri legislature has been called by Missouri Governor Mike Parson. When asked if sports gambling legislation would be among the topics of discussion, the Governor’s spokesperson, Kelli Jones, had this to say:

“Sports betting is clearly beyond the call and does not relate to Governor Parson’s topics in the call. I do not anticipate sports betting being a part of the special session.”

This is very much in line with the Governor’s recent comments about wanting to put off addressing such legislation until the Spring of 2023. That is bad news for Missouri residents who have been waiting a lifetime for the chance to legally bet on sports from the comfort of their homes.

The legislation that’s currently in the House is HB 4. The bill calls for the legalization of both retail and mobile sports betting under the following fee schedule: Retail operators on riverboats would need to pay an application fee of $100,000 for the initial license and an annual renewal fee of $50,000. For mobile operators, the initial fee would be $150,000 and $125,000 for renewals. All operators would be subject to a 10% tax rate on gross gambling revenue.

Kansas Get the Jump on Missouri

Sensing there was a significant opportunity, the Kansas legislature already passed sports betting legislation. Furthermore, the state’s licensed sports betting operators were given the green light to start taking bets just a few weeks ago.

If there were any doubts about the desire of Missourians to wager on sports, they were quickly removed the very first week that Kansas mobile operators started taking bets. It was reported that 16,000 Missouri residents were denied the ability to open new accounts across state lines in the first few hours. Within a week, more than 150,000 Missouri residents were denied this access.

If Missouri residents want to open mobile betting accounts, they will have to drive into the state of Kansas. By law, Kansas mobile sports betting operators are required to use geo-tracking technology to confirm the location of each person trying to access a mobile betting site.

Mobile sports betting support from Missouri residents is more than welcomed by the Kansas legislature as long as bettors follow the right protocols. It’s a matter of increasing the tax revenue that will be pouring into the state of Kansas’ coffers until the Missouri legislature is ready to get things done.

It looks like Missouri residents will have to make the drive until at least the summer of next year. That’s a small price to pay for avid sports bettors who are happy to have any kind of betting access while the Missouri legislature tries to get its act together.