Nebraska Eyes Online Betting Expansion via Constitutional Amendment

In 2020, Nebraska residents voted in favor of authorizing retail sports betting. The ballot at the time helped expand the legal gambling activities available to residents of the state. Another push that seeks to deliver legal mobile sports betting is under way.

Constitutional Amendment Proposes Online Betting Legalization in Nebraska

That’s the case under Legislative Resolution 20CA, a proposal filed by Sen. Eliot Bostar. Recently, the Legislature’s General Affairs Committee heard other proposals too that proposed the expansion of gambling activities and the allocation of additional tax proceeds.

Notably, Sen. Bostar’s proposal seeks to authorize online sports betting in Nebraska via a constitutional amendment that requires voter approval. This is a popular approach that lawmakers across the country consider when attempting to expand gambling activities for residents of their state.

Sarah Meuli, DraftKings’ government affairs manager, who was recently quoted by the Nebraska Examiner, spoke about the growing popularity of sports betting. She pointed to the overwhelming support in-person betting received by Nebraska residents on the 2020 ballot. “That enthusiasm has only grown,” Meuli added.

“Five years ago, your constituents overwhelmingly passed in-person sports betting when they cast their vote yes on the 2020 ballot legalizing it with the state.“

Sarah Meuli, government affairs manager at DraftKings

Sharing a similar position, Bostar explained that Nebraska continues to lose tax revenue by not offering legal online betting. He estimated that the state loses approximately $32 million in tax revenue to nearby states such as Colorado, Kansas and Iowa. In addition, according to Bostar, the proposed bill represents “an opportunity to create a new source of tax revenue for property tax relief.”

“Nebraska is currently missing out on a $1.6 billion state online industry and $32 million in annual tax revenue which instead goes to neighboring states like Iowa, Colorado, Kansas.“

Sen. Eliot Bostar

Opponents Voice Their Concerns

Indeed, most of Nebraska’s neighboring states, including Iowa, Kansas, Colorado and Wyoming, currently offer mobile sports betting. Generally speaking, most states that offer retail and mobile sports betting see the majority of the activity taking place online.

In that line of thought, expanding the betting options for Nebraska residents may bring additional tax revenue. However, not everyone agrees that extra proceeds are worth the cost of expanding gambling in the state.

Nate Grasz, the executive director of the Nebraska Family Alliance, criticized the proposed expansion of gambling in the state. “The house always wins. For the house to win, the people of Nebraska and our own children … have to lose,” he explained. Finally, Grasz said that if lawmakers want residents to vote for or against online betting on the ballot, they should “do the work themselves,” instead of asking senators to pave the way for the potential expansion of betting.