Legislative season is never dull for the gaming industry and this latest roundup includes a potential tax hike in Maryland and a sweepstakes bill in New Jersey.
Bills to legalise online casino gaming in Wyoming and Indiana, a proposed gambling tax rate hike in Maryland and a bill to legalise “sweepstakes gaming” in New Jersey were all rolled out this week as what tends to be a four-month flurry of legislative activity across the US begins.
In Maryland, gambling expansion backers have said they intend to reintroduce their own igaming legislation soon. But the more immediate news on Wednesday (15 January) was that Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland, introduced his annual budget. It notably includes his endorsement of a boost in sports betting tax from 15% to 30% and a rise in casino table game rates from 20% to 25%.
Ohio and Illinois already have raised their sports betting tax rates in the past year. The former did so less than a year after the first legal bets were placed.
New Yo..