Constitutional Amendment Needed For Georgia Sports Betting

• The Georgia Senate passed Senate Bill 386 by a vote of 35-15, advancing the sports betting bill to the House.
• However, a key amendment to GA SB 386 requires a constitutional amendment that would bring Georgia sports betting to voter decision.
• Many Georgia senators support the bill based on its impact on education, specifically Pre-K funding.

ATLANTA – Thursday’s Georgia General Assembly meeting saw the passage of a sports betting bill on the Senate floor. Although, a key amendment to Senate Bill 386 proves that it’s constitutional amendment or bust for legal sports betting in the Peach State moving forward.

Sen. Clint Dixon’s sports betting bill (GA SB 386) intended to legalize and regulate sports betting in the state of Georgia without a constitutional amendment. Senators voted 34-7 in favor of an amendment proposed by Sen. Bill Cowsert that calls for a constitutional amendment to legalize Georgia sports betting.

Major Amendment Impacts Georgia Sports Betting Bill

Although the bill ultimately passed out of the Senate with a 35-15 vote, the overwhelming majority of senators want the input of Georgia voters. This means there won’t be any Georgia sports betting until 2025 at the earliest.

The proposed Georgia sports betting law would regulate and tax online, mobile, and in-person sports betting in the state of Georgia. Advancing the bill to the Georgia House is a positive step forward, but the added constitutional amendment requirement creates a hurdle the original bill hoped to avoid.

Before any Georgia voters can say yes or no to GA SB 386, the bill must successfully pass out of the House. Last year’s Georgia House sports betting bill never made it to the House floor for voting.

Pre-K Education Funding Key To Passage In Senate

Although legalizing sports betting would bring in at least $100 million annually for the state, Georgia senators placed higher emphasis on Ga SB 386’s impact of educational funding. Sen. Harold Jones and Sen. Gloria Butler expressed their support for the bill that would “help Georgia fulfill a 33-year promise to help fund universal pre-k.”

A 20% tax rate on gross sports betting revenue would go to the Georgia Lottery. The sports betting bill requires a minimum age of 21 years old to bet and allows all betting on in-state college sports.

News tags: Bill Cowsert | Clint Dixon | GA SB 386 | Georgia | Gloria Butler | Harold Jones