New York might increase the count of its mobile sports betting operators, according to the latest budget plans proposals from the New York Assembly and Senate. In their one-house budget proposals, both entities suggested having more online sports betting skins, however, in both of their plans a language about the reduction of the tax rate was not present.
In January this year, the Empire State formally launched its mobile sports betting market, which consists of nine operators. In order to operate in the market, the operators had to agree to a 51% tax rate on their revenue, however, this percentage has been deemed too high by some industry leaders and have requested more licenses for the market.
Budget Proposals
Previous budget proposals saw the suggestion for the decrease of the tax rate, which is the highest for a sports betting market in the whole of the U.S. However, with the last two proposals from the New York State Assembly or the New York State Senate such a language has been omitted. But still, the two plans propose an increase of online sportsbook operators.
Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow are among the lawmakers who would like to see more operators in the stateās mobile sports betting sector. Mr. Addabbo has recently commented that whether it is the boosting of operator count or reduction of the tax rate, the change needs to make fiscal sense and that currently, the market is quite beneficial for the people of New York.
In the meantime, the state continues to reap the rewards from its online expansion, as until now it has accumulated US$42 million in taxes for the first full month of operations and that was February. According to the New York State Gaming Commission for the whole month, the operators have handled over US$1.5 billion in online sports wagers.
Currently, a total of eight gaming brands operate in the stateās recently launched mobile sports betting market. So far FanDuel, DraftKings, Caesars Sportsbook, BetMGM, BetRivers, WynnBET, PointsBet, and Resorts World have launched in the market. The only one left is Bally Bet, but a while back the company announced that it will be taking its time and delaying its launch to April this year.
For the first six days of March, the eight active skins have handled US$322,845,031 in wagers, thus generating revenue of US$31,151,027. And more than half of it will go to the stateās budget. So far this month, FanDuel has handled the largest amount of volume with a handle of US$ 130,151,524, DraftKings is second with US$83,956,641 and Caesars Entertainment is third with US$57,974,688.
Further Expansion of the Sector
Last month, Mr. Addabbo Jr. has also expressed his desire to further expand the Empire Stateās gambling sector. The Senator introduced Bill S8412 to the New York Senate, which if approved, would legalize interactive gaming offerings in the state. In his legislation, he stated that the expansion would be able to generate approximately US$475 million in state tax revenue every year.
