New Bill Would Allow For Mobile Sportsbooks In South Dakota

• On January 31, South Dakota Senate Joint Resolution 502 passed through the Senate Commerce and Energy Committee – it now awaits further action in the Senate.
• The bill would allow existing land-based sportsbooks to launch online sportsbooks, which would allow South Dakotans to bet on sports online from anywhere in the state.

PIERRE, S.D. – On the final day of January, South Dakota’s Senate Commerce and Energy Committee passed Senate Joint Resolution 502, sending it on to the Senate for further consideration.

SJR 502 Could Expand Sports Betting In South Dakota In A Big Way

SJR 502 comes over a year after the 2020 voter referendum in which voters decided to authorize in-person sportsbooks in the city of Deadwood only. The first legal sports betting options in South Dakota launched in September of 2021.

The new resolution – which narrowly passed the committee vote 5-4  – would allow voters of South Dakota to decide if they wish to authorize sports betting via mobile devices and betting kiosks in the city of Deadwood. To do this, the bill would authorize Deadwood’s existing land-based sportsbooks to launch mobile sportsbooks on servers located on-premises or on sovereign tribal lands.

The bill has the potential to completely overhaul South Dakota’s sports betting industry, as the industry is currently limited to in-person sportsbooks in a single city. If successful, SJR502 would create several online sportsbooks in South Dakota which would allow South Dakotans to wager on sports from anywhere in the state. In states that feature both land-based and mobile sportsbooks, over three-quarters of all wagers placed are done using a mobile sportsbook, meaning a huge increase in revenue is in store for the state if the bill is implemented.

Unlike many other jurisdictions with both land-based and online sports betting, the bill does not specify a different tax rate for mobile sportsbooks. It is likely that they will be subject to the same 9% tax on gross sportsbook revenues that is levied against land-based sportsbooks, barring any changes to the bill or further legislation.

At some point in the near future (potentially as early as this week), South Dakota’s 35 sitting senators will decide the fate of the bill.

News tags: Deadwood | South Dakota | South Dakota Senate Commerce And Energy Committee | South Dakota Senate Joint Resolution 502