Special Session May Be Needed For Connecticut Sports Betting

• With the General Assembly ending on June 5 lawmakers may need more time for sports betting to be legalized.
• The Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes are the only groups currently offering sports gambling in Connecticut.
• Lawmakers want sports betting for the entire state, not just within the tribes.

HARTFORD, Conn. – Legal sports betting in Connecticut may need some extra help in order to be passed into law. The General Assembly ends on June 5, which may or may not give lawmakers enough time to pass the bill. The sports betting bill has not been approved yet by the General Assembly, requiring lawmakers to take an extra step if needed to make sure the bill comes to fruition.

With Governor Ned Lamont on board for legal sports betting in the state, the bill may be passed either which way, but its fate is currently unknown. Unlike other states that have passed sports betting laws without any extra arrangements, Connecticut lawmakers are prepared to do what they deem is necessary for sports betting in The Constitution State.

Connecticut is home to the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes. Both are able to provide sports gambling at their casinos in spite of there being no sports betting laws in the state yet. The tribes, for the time, are holding the right to be the only ones able to offer sports gambling. The tribes do not want to give that right up, and some plan to challenge that ruling.

“I don’t think this new legislature will hand that over to anybody, including the tribes,” said Rep. Joe Verrengia (West Hartford-D).  “There are numerous stakeholders that have vested interest.”

Lawmakers still have until the beginning of June to make the decision on the special session. For now, residents and bettors alike will have to sit tight until the dust settles and a clear-cut decision can be made after things have run its course. Some legislators have more immediate plans in mind.

“It’s that important,” said House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz speaking to the Hartford Courant. “Other states are getting up and running. Our residents are currently gambling on sports in one way, shape or form, and we need to pass the bill sooner rather than later.”

The state of Connecticut will meet its fate in regard to sports gambling in the coming months. Until then, the tribes will hold the monopoly on sports gambling in the state until a new law says otherwise.

News tags: Connecticut | sports betting