Legalized sports betting in California faces opposition and Senate suspense vote
California sports betting bill faces tribal opposition and June 18 Senate Suspense vote.
The California Sports Wagering and Consumer Protection Act that would allow mobile and land-based sports betting at tribal casinos and horse racetracks in California was moved to the Suspense File by the Senate Appropriations Committee at their Tuesday hearing. Constitutional Amendment 6 (SCA 6) will face a vote at the committee’s Suspense Hearing on June 18.
This next legislative process comes after SCA 6 passed through the California Senate Governmental Organization Committee 2 June with a 9-3 vote.
Many California tribes oppose the bill for allowing cardrooms concessions and online wagering that could lead to limited regulations and foot traffic at tribal casinos.
Several people spoke on behalf of the tribes as calls of opposition flooded in during the Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Tuesday. One of the callers said the amendment was “another broken agreement between the state of California and the tribes.”
Multiple professional sports leagues support SCA 6, saying its top priority “must be to protect consumers and the integrity of sporting events.” They also said legal sports betting will help end existing illegal unregulated sports gambling on offshore sites that fail to contribute tax revenue.
According to the American Gaming Association (AGA), sports gambling contributed to the uptick in national commercial gaming revenue last year. AGA reported earnings of almost $908.9 million in sports betting.
Legal sports gambling in California is gaining support because it could provide millions in revenue and help relieve some of the $54 billion deficit and potential budget cuts California faces in response to COVID-19.
The tribes said the projected revenue was exaggerated and did not take account for an altered betting climate caused by COVID-19.
Stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic kept tribes from gathering public signatures for their own sports betting initiative and are now suing the state of California and seeking a deadline extension for their petition.
According AGA, California is among 16 states that have active legislation. SCA 6 still requires a two-thirds majority in the House and Senate, and has a 25 June deadline to make it on the November ballot.
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