Connecticut lawmakers said that there will be "no legislative action" on legalizing sports gambling in the state until "next year under a new governor," according to Christopher Keating of the HARTFORD COURANT. Connecticut House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz on Monday said that there will be "no special session on the topic this year." The change "marks a sharp turnaround from nine months ago when lawmakers said they were far ahead of other states in laying the groundwork to prepare for sports betting." An MLB spokesperson in April said that Connecticut "had the chance to pass model legislation that would be emulated by other states." But those days "have passed." Aresimowicz said that it was "'foolish' for Connecticut to drop the idea for now because the state could have received millions in revenue." While estimates have "varied, nonpartisan analysts have said the state could receive" $20M a year from sports betting. Deputy House Speaker Robert Godfrey agreed that the delay "puts Connecticut behind other states," but he said that there are "still too many unanswered questions about exactly how sports betting would work." Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy had been "negotiating with the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes, who want to offer sports betting at their casinos in southeastern Connecticut" (HARTFORD COURANT, 8/29).
ADDING TO THE LIST: In Philadelphia, Andrew Maykuth noted Greenwood Gaming & Entertainment "wants to accept sports bets at its offtrack racing outlet in the heart of Philadelphia's stadium complex." Greenwood on Friday filed an application with the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board for a sports-wagering license at its Parx Casino in Bensalem, but a potential second application "would allow sports wagering at the South Philadelphia Turf Club, just a few hundred feet from the venues for the city's professional sports teams" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 8/28).
