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Kansas Trying To Navigate Through The Details Of Sports Betting

Kansas Lawmakers Are Trying To Legalize Sports Betting In The State

Lawmakers are facing an impasse when it comes to legalizing sports betting in the Sunflower State. There is huge support for giving sports betting a green light; it’s the details that are creating the stumbling block.
The issue is the current sports betting bill that would allow sports betting on different sporting events. It also involves selling state lottery tickets online. Some lawmakers who are creating havoc have been met with scorn by residents and advocates alike.

One of the allegations is that some lawmakers are trying to allow state-run casinos a much more generous amount of profits, then they should be allotted. There was some good news at the state Senate on Wednesday, when the bill received a first-round positive vote. This vote comes less than a month after the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl in Florida.

According to a source at the legislator, many Kansas residents that are fans of the Chiefs placed bets on the game out of state.

If The Bill Passes

There is a second vote planned for the bill in the coming days, say sources. After a final vote in the state senate, the bill would move on to the House. There is a separate committee at the House working on their own legislation regarding sports betting.

Advocates and sponsors of sports betting in Kansas say they are exhausted after an 18-month tug of war and meetings. There are currently four casinos in Kansas that the state owns. The daily operations of these casinos are managed by private companies.

The sports betting bill would all allow sports betting at these casinos, and there will also be online lottery ticket access. The casinos would also be permitted to offer sports betting on mobile devices.

However, to establish an account, a person must be 21 and appear in person to open their account.

Getting Close

One argument that some proponents of sports betting say the money that would be raised by sports betting would only be $5 million or less. The reason being that 95% of the money would go back to the betters in winnings, and that’s why the profits for the state are not that high.

However, advocates say sports betting could always be fine-tuned at a later date, according to the wording of the bill.

Kansas Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine explained, ”It certainly put us in a position where we can establish sports betting in Kansas and hopefully pull wagers from a black market, off-shore, unregulated, non-taxed market and bring it into Kansas under a regulated, safe market.”

Longbine, a Republican from Emporia, Kan., led his colleagues into a four-hour debate, where he talked about the merits of sports betting.

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