Missouri could lose millions with no legal sports betting during start of football season

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - Missouri could lose millions in tax revenue after the Secretary of State pushed back the timeline for sports betting.

Secretary of State Denny Hoskins rejected emergency rules that would’ve allowed sports betting to start in Missouri this summer. Now, Missourians will wait until at least late September or early October to place a legal bet.

This all comes after Missourians voted to legalize sports betting in November. Amendment Two ed with a narrow margin. With no challengers, sports betting became legal in Missouri in December, but the Missouri Gaming Commission still has to get rules and licensing in place before it’s operational.

Hoskins reasons the rules do not constitute an emergency, and going through the regular rule-making process allows the public to submit comments and questions on the proposed rule. The non-emergency rules go into effect Aug. 30, and then the Commission will begin the licensing process.

Hoskins said he believes public comment on the rules is important because he’s not a fan of Amendment Two’s proposed taxing plan.

“I wanted to give anyone, whether you’re ive of sportsbook or you have questions and concerns about sportsbook, that opportunity to publicly comment on that,” Hoskins said.

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During his time in the Missouri Senate, Hoskins stood in the way of several sports betting bills with lower tax structures. He pushed for bills that would’ve had double the amount of taxes on casinos than the plan in Amendment Two.

Under Amendment Two, there will be a 10% tax on that gambling revenue. The auditor’s office is estimating up to $29 million in tax revenue coming from sports betting. That revenue is allocated first to cover any of the “reasonable expenses” incurred by the Gaming Commission that were not covered by revenue from fees.

After those expenses are covered, 10% of the remaining wagering tax revenue or $5 million, whichever is greater, would be allocated to the state’s Compulsive Gaming Prevention Fund. Finally, whatever revenue is remaining is legally required to be spent on “institutions of elementary, secondary, and higher education” in Missouri.

Ryan Butler tracks and studies sports betting for Covers. He said Missouri stands to lose between $4-6 million in tax revenue with this delay, a loss that’s only exacerbated since the beginning of football season is the biggest time for sportsbooks.

“NFL and college football are far and away the most bet upon sports, and again, that’s why this delay is so important,” Butler said.

In Missouri, there were more than 11 million attempts to place a sports bet just during the first half of the 2024 football season, according to data from GeoComply.

The Missouri Gaming Commission and Hoskins are both still confident Missouri will meet the Dec. 1 deadline to have operational sportsbooks set by Amendment Two.

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