Louisiana Governor Signs Sports Betting Referendum Bill Into Law

• Local voters will now be able to choose if they are in favor or against allowing legal Louisiana sports betting in their parish this Fall.
• Governor John Bel Edwards has signed Senate Bill 130 into law which is why local voters now have a choice.
• Implementing a legal sports betting market in Louisiana could be seen as early as the Fall of 2021 for all parishes in favor of the industry.

BATON ROUGE, La.- Governor John Bel Edwards has signed Senate Bill 130 that will put Louisiana sports betting legalization to a public vote on the 2020 November ballot.

Edwards was sent the bill on June 1 after it passed through the Louisiana State Legislature. LA SB 130 officially became known as Act. No. 215 once it was signed into law ten days after the Governor received it.

From Senate Bill 130 To Act. No. 215

Senate Bill 130 was the referendum bill that would give the constituents of Louisiana the ability to decide on their own whether or not they would like to see legal sports betting in their parish.

The topic will now be addressed on the November 2020 ballots for all 64 parishes in the Bayou State. Residents of Louisiana were able to vote on something similar in 2018 when it came to the legalization of Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS), which is now legal in 47 of the 64 parishes after that vote.

Once Governor Edwards signed LA SB 130 making it a law, it turned into Act. No. 215. The Act states the following for what will occur next.

“At the statewide election occurring on November 3, 2020, a proposition shall appear on the ballot in every parish to determine whether sports wagering activities and operations shall be permitted in the parish.”

The ballot for the election shall state as follows:

“PROPOSITION TO AUTHORIZE SPORTS WAGERING ACTIVITIES”

“Shall sports wagering activities and operations be permitted in the parish of _________________? YES ( ) NO ( )”

“The voters shall vote for or against the proposition. A vote for the proposition being a ‘YES’ vote, and a vote against the proposition being a ‘NO’ vote.”

The Future For Legal Sports Betting In Louisiana

Legal sports betting in Louisiana will now be up to the people this Fall. At 10 p.m. on November 3, each parish will know how their neighbors voted on the topic and lawmakers will know how their constituents feel about sports betting markets as well.

The 2021 session will then focus on discussions about the rules and regulations that will go into the official legal sports betting market for the Bayou State.

From now through the remainder of the year, various opinions will be taken from each parish as to what they would like to see from a legal sports gambling events industry. Those opinions will then be weighed in the 2021 session when drawing up proposals for the new market.

Millions of dollars are expected to be seen in annual revenue from the new industry which will be welcome amid the losses sustained from the Coronavirus pandemic.

After regulations and rules have been drawn up, including a taxation program, applications for sportsbook licenses will be next. Parishes that vote in favor of legal sports betting may be able to bet on the New Orleans Saints or the LSU Tigers by the 2021 season through local sports betting platforms.

“Legalizing sports betting will help us to attract new customers and help insulate this industry from out of state competition,” said Senator Ronnie Johns to LegalSportsBetting. “Implementation at the earliest would be late 2021 or early 2022.”

News tags: Act No. 215 | Coronavirus | John Bel Edwards | LA SB 130 | Louisiana | Louisiana State Legislature | LSU | New Orleans Saints | Ronnie Johns | Senate Bill 130