New Hampshire Sports Betting Bill Passes State House

• NH HB 480 passed the House and is heading to the Senate.
• The bill will legalize both retail and mobile sports betting.
• Governor Chris Sununu is already planning for sports betting in his budget.

CONCORD, N.H. – A sports betting bill in New Hampshire passed in the State’s House on Tuesday and is heading to the Senate.

House representatives in New Hampshire has passed NH HB 480 with a 269-82 in favor of the bill. The bill will now head to the Senate for consideration.

What The Bill Will Do

NH HB 480 will authorize full-scale sports betting in New Hampshire. What this means is that there will be sportsbooks available in both retail locations and mobile platforms. It has been proven that sports betting in other states are far more successful when they include a mobile option for customers.

Sports betting in New Hampshire will be running and operated by the New Hampshire Lottery Commission. Thanks to how the Lottery run their other operations, sportsbooks will likely open where you can buy lottery tickets. However, House members set limits on what is allowed to happen with New Hampshire sports betting.

Adding Amendments

Before NH HB 480 passed in the House, state representatives decided to add a couple of amendments to the bill. One of the amendments that were passed is that there is a limit on how many retail locations that can be opened. There will be only 10 retail sportsbook locations in New Hampshire if this bill passes.

Another amendment added a stipulation that a council for responsible gambling would be implemented. Representative Richard Ames said that this council is essential for helping those who are affected by underground gambling.

“Establishing this new Council for Responsible Gambling and bringing black-market sports betting out of the shadows into a place where help can be provided when needed means that we are at last going to get serious about this destructive addiction,” said Ames.

Leaving It Up To The Voters

Although the lawmakers are the one deciding if New Hampshire will get sports betting, the voters will also have a say in the matter. Local elections will be held to see if they want to bring a sportsbook to their county or city. There will only be 10 sportsbook locations in the state so it is unclear how these elections will happen.

Despite the result of the elections, mobile wagering will be implemented throughout the state. That gives sports bettors whose local elections decided not to bring in a retail sportsbook another option for them to place their bets.

Money Factor

Lawmakers from New Hampshire is hoping that legal sports betting will bring in a lot of revenue for the state. Fiscal notes in the bill are projecting that $7.5 million will be brought in due to sports wagering in the first year.

The bill is not the only one that is projecting a large take with sports gambling. Governor Chris Sununu has included $10 million for the state in his budget proposal.

Sports betting in New Hampshire has a lot of traction going on for it. With the support of the governor, state senators might be more motivated to pass a bill they know will be signed into law. NH HB 480 will head to the Senate next for consideration.

News tags: New Hampshire | New Hampshire sports betting | NH HB 480 | sports betting