Oklahoma sports betting bill passes House 66-26

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A bill to bring sports betting to Oklahoma has passed the House, increasing the chances that tribal operators will be able to offer sports betting in the near future. 

House Bill 1027, filed by Rep. Ken Luttrell, passed the Oklahoma House by 66-26 this week and will now pass over into the Senate where it will be assigned to a committee.

The bill proposed that the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission will oversee sports betting, so long as the tribal nations agree to a tribal-state compact. 

From a tax perspective, tribal operators will be obligated to pay 4% of gross gaming revenue on the first $5m of annual revenue, 5% on the next $5m of GGR and 6% of revenue above that initial $10m.

It also states that 12% of the taxes collected will go to the general revenue fund, whilst 88% would be allocated to the Education Reform Revolving Fund

Now HB1027 has passed the House, it will travel through to the Senate where it will land in the committee stage before heading to a floor vote. Should it be successful in the Senate, it will become law subject to the conference committee and the signature of Governor Kevin Stitt.

Whilst he has remained tight-lipped on HB1207, Gov. Stitt has stated that he is in support of sports betting in Oklahoma. 

Taking to Twitter at the start of the year, the Governor stated: “Let me be clear: I support sports betting in Oklahoma – provided that it’s fair, transparent, and the state can maximize revenue potential to invest in top priorities, like education.”