NY’s Current Stance On Regulating Mobile Sportsbooks In 2021

• The New York FY2022 budget proposal has surpassed its April 1 deadline where a regulated mobile sports betting market was to be included.
• Three proposals are open to expanding the sports betting industry of New York with mobile platforms.
• The next few days should see a conclusion of where a regulated mobile sportsbook market in New York for 2021 will end up.

ALBANY, N.Y. – The deadline for the New York fiscal year budget for 2022 came and went as lawmakers were deadlocked on a few issues, including a regulated mobile sports betting market on Thursday.

A number of bills still required discussions to be eligible for inclusion in the monumental $200 billion budget proposal presented in Albany. However, headway has been made for a mobile sportsbook bill that would give balance to the three proposals presented in the New York State Assembly that have been seeking approval.

“Gaming issues like downstate gaming licenses and mobile gaming are still being negotiated by the Senate, Assembly, and Governor’s office. I feel there is a 50/50 chance that it will get done in the budget,” said Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr in his official statement sent to LegalSportsBetting.

Addabbo is currently in Albany taking part in the discussions on sports gaming and its part in the budget bill. He has been an advocate for mobile sports betting in New York for years and is the sponsor of one of the three bills for mobile sportsbooks that is on the table in 2021.

“I just think we need to talk about facts and figures. If we want to talk about how our neighboring state New Jersey takes $837 million of our money from New York because it’s easier to jump the border from New York to New Jersey and use your mobile phone than it is to take a drive upstate,” said Addabbo in 2020 to LegalSportsBetting. “We have illegal activity here that runs about a billion dollars, we could recoup that money with our own regulated market.”

What’s Happening In Albany?

New York mobile sports wagering is close to becoming a reality because Governor Andrew Cuomo has finally become a supporter of the industry. The problem with why legislation is taking so long in moving forward is because of the three bills up for approvals in the Assembly. One is backed by Cuomo while the other two are companion proposals that differ in the structure of Cuomo’s legislation.

Assembly Bill 1257 and Senate Bill 1183 (Addabbo’s proposal) would have the seven retail casinos in the state open two mobile sportsbooks for a total of 14 mobile apps that could be used statewide. However, the problem with this was that the casinos would receive the majority of profits with a tax rate of 12% and the regulatory body would be the New York Gaming Commission.

Cuomo would rather have the New York Lottery run the mobile sports betting industry so that the profits go directly to the state rather than the casino businesses that would be offering the platforms to residents. New Hampshire has a similar structure to the one Cuomo is proposing and they take in 51% of all GGR on sports betting because of it. This could result in at least $500 million in yearly revenue from the mobile sports wagering industry of New York as billions are wagered annually by New Yorkers.

The Compromise

Over the weekend, a compromise may be seen to put this back-and-forth issue of where to stand on the regulated mobile sportsbook industry of New York to bed and officially place it in the 2022 fiscal budget. The New York Gaming Commission would be able to partner with commercial casinos to launch a handful of sports betting platforms while the industry would remain the state-run format that Cuomo is pushing for.

This would give both sides what they want while benefitting the economy of the Empire State immensely. Of course, more discussions will be occurring over the next 48 hours to see where the issue may finally land. But as a conclusion looks to be coming around the corner, a new blip has popped up on the radar that could cause a kink in the moving forward of regulated mobile sports wagering in New York.

The tribes may present a problem with legislation moving toward law through their opposition to the idea.

At the moment, it looks like a green light for regulated mobile sportsbooks in 2021 in New York but anyone living in the city knows green lights don’t last that long and some traffic may be seen in the next few days on the topic.

News tags: Albany | Andrew Cuomo | Joseph Addabbo Jr. | New York | New York budget | New York Gaming Commission | New York Lottery | New York State Assembly