Wisconsin Moves Closer To Legalizing Online Sports Betting

Wisconsin has taken another step toward the legalization of online sports betting. The Wisconsin State Assembly approved Assembly Bill 601 (AB 601). This bill would make it legal for online sports betting to be offered in the state through a partnership with the state’s tribes.

The bill, which has bipartisan support, was passed via voice vote following a brief debate on the Assembly floor about the bill’s terms.

AB 601 would enable Wisconsin’s tribes to provide access to online and mobile sports wagering to anyone who is physically located within state lines. Players wouldn’t need to be situated on tribal lands in order to place online sports bets. The wager placed would be considered legal because it would be deemed to have occurred on tribal land through a hub-and-spoke system.

This is similar to how online sports betting operates in Florida through that state’s compact with the Seminole tribe. That setup was challenged in court by opponents of the system and was deemed to be legal.

Under the terms of AB 601, Wisconsin’s tribes would be allowed to form partnerships with commercial sportsbook operators and gain access to their branding and technology. The bill calls for 60% of all online sports betting revenue to go to the state’s tribes.

“Gaming revenue helps ensure that mothers and babies have access to health care and healthy food, that our elders can receive care, and that families have housing,” said Nicole Boyd, chairperson of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. “That our roads are plowed, and that law enforcement and fire departments are able to serve us.”

The next step in the process will see the bill go to the State Senate for further debate. If AB 601 gains approval from the Senate, it would go to Governor Tony Evers desk to be signed into law. It would still require the Governor’s Office to negotiate amendments to the state’s tribal compacts and to be given federal approval from the Department of the Interior through the Bureau of Indian Affairs before it could be enacted.

While there’s no specific mention of a taxation rate for online sports betting in the state, generally, that step is negotiated as a revenue-sharing element of the amendments to tribal compacts.

Wisconsin lawmakers anticipate a significant uptake in revenue from online sports betting

Wisconsin has offered retail sports betting since 2021, also through amendments to tribal gaming compacts. However, state lawmakers, along with tribal representatives, insist that Wisconsin is losing significant revenue to neighboring states such as Michigan, Iowa, and Indiana, which all offer legal and regulated online and mobile sports betting.

“By allowing a legal framework for mobile sports wagering, the state will see increased revenue through the state gaming compacts, and consumers will have the legal protection needed to ensure that they receive fair play,” Boyd told Tribal Business News. She was speaking on behalf of the Great Lakes Intertribal Council (GLITC). “Let’s get this work done so we can provide something that will truly benefit Wisconsin.”

Boyd estimated that “hundreds of millions of dollars” in online sports betting revenue is leaving Wisconsin and going to the neighboring states and unregulated offshore sports betting platforms.

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