Sports betting handle in Pennsylvania in May was "down for the second consecutive month" since hitting a peak of $44.5M in March, though the first four days of online sports betting action "suggested a broader audience was just a few clicks away from joining in," according to Andrew Maykuth of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. Pennsylvania bettors wagered $35.9M on sports in May, down 2.4% from April and down 19.3% from March. SugarHouse Casino, the first casino in the state to launch online sports betting on May 27, said that bettors "placed $573,163 in interactive wagers during the last four days of the month" (INQUIRER.com, 6/18).
GOING TO HAVE TO WAIT: In Albany, David Lombardo notes New York lawmakers are expected to leave the capital this week "without approving legislation that would allow casinos to accept sports wagers over the internet." The measure "overwhelmingly passed the Senate on Monday with bipartisan support, but it likely won't receive a vote in the state Assembly before the scheduled end of the legislative session." The stumbling block continues to be the "constitutionality of internet sports wagering." State lawmakers would "need to approve an amendment to the state Constitution to pave the way to internet sports wagering in New York." That process "could take at least two years to implement" (Albany TIMES UNION, 6/19).
CHANGE OF HEART: The AP's Wayne Parry noted New Jersey lawmakers are "considering loosening their sports betting restrictions to allow the owner of the Golden Nugget casino to accept bets" on most NBA teams. Rockets Owner Tilman Fertitta owns the casino and when New Jersey lawmakers legalized sports betting last year, a "provision in the law banned team owners from placing or accepting bets on any games involving their sport." A bill introduced Monday in the New Jersey Legislature "would allow team owners to take bets on games involving other teams in their leagues, but not their own" (AP, 6/18).
