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Two senators have introduced a Maryland iGaming bill that would legalize online casino-style games if approved by voters on 2024 ballot.
Maryland Senators Ronald L. Watson (D) and Nancy J. King (D) have introduced an iGaming bill that would put a referendum question on the November 2024 general election ballot. The bill will have to be approved by a 60% majority in both Maryland legislative houses for the referendum question to appear on the 2024 ballot.
Watson and King’s bill, SB 267, was introduced and referred to the budget and taxation committee.
Casino-style games in 2025?
If approved by the legislature, voters would see this question on the 2024 November ballot:
“Do you favor the expansion of commercial gaming in the State of Maryland to authorize Internet gaming for the primary purpose of raising revenue for education?”
If approved by voters, it would set the state up for a potential launch of iGaming in 2025. Though, if you compare the launch of iGaming to the state’s sports betting journey, it may take longer than a year to get everything up and running.
The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, according to what’s written in the bill, would be able to award iGaming licenses to operators. No specific number of licenses are mentioned in the bill, but they would be valid for 5 years and cost an operator $500,000 to acquire.
An operator may renew the license after five years for a renewal fee “equal to 1% of the internet gaming licensee’s average annual proceeds retained by the licensee.”
No specific iGaming tax rate was noted in the bill, but a line specifically states that an operator will “retain 85% of the proceeds from internet gaming received by the licensee.”
The bill only states that “casino-style” gaming will be legalized if approved by the legislature and voters. It’s unknown if this will include poker, but these types of bills usually legalize games such as blackjack, slots, roulette, and other game types.
Maryland constitutional amendments typically approved
Daniel Wallach, a gaming law and sports betting attorney, founder of Wallach Legal, reported that Maryland voters have roundly approved of ballot measures since 1996. Wallach noted that from 1996 to 2000, 36 referendums have appeared on election ballots and 33 were approved.
From 1985 to 2020, 54 referendums appeared on election ballots, with 49 approved by voters.
In Maryland, a total of 54 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2020. Forty-nine ballot measures were approved, and 5 ballot measures were defeated.
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) January 25, 2023
Maryland voters overwhelmingly approved the state’s sports betting referendum in November 2020. Voters approved the ballot question by a 2-1 margin, with 1.7 million voters approving the question compared with just 856,000 against it.
It took more than two years from approval of the referendum question to Maryland taking its first online sports bet, the longest a state has taken from approval to launch in the country.
Robert is an expert on sports betting in the United States, specifically the legalization process and regulation surrounding the industry.
