Wisconsin Won’t Vote on Sports Betting Until Next Year

Wisconsin sports bettors have waited a long time to be able to place their wagers online or via a mobile device. And they will be waiting even longer.

State lawmakers opted to pause a planned vote on Bill AB 601, which was scheduled for Wednesday. The bill proposes legalizing online sports betting in the state.

“I had a conversation with a couple of members over the weekend that brought up some points I hadn’t considered yet, so we’re going to work on those,” State Assembly Majority Leader Tyler August told the website WisPolitics.

August, a Republican representing Walworth, is the sponsor of Bill AB 601.

One reason for the pause was that the State Senate is currently not in session.

“There’s ​really ​no ​rush ​on ​this,” August told 620 WTMJ. “​The ​Senate’s ​not ​coming ​back ​this ​week. ​

“I ​expect ​that ​we’ll ​be ​voting ​on ​it ​early ​next ​year.”

There is concern that there may not be enough votes among Senate Republicans to pass the bill. On the other hand, Democrats, including Governor Tony Evers, have expressed their support for the bill.

“I ​plan ​to ​support ​it,” Assembly Minority Leader Greta Neubauer said. “​We ​know ​that ​our ​tribes ​in ​Wisconsin ​have ​the ​right ​to ​control ​gaming ​in ​our ​state, ​and ​right ​now ​that’s ​not ​happening ​with ​online ​sports ​betting. ​So, ​I ​do ​hope ​that ​we ​pass ​a ​bill ​that ​puts ​control ​of ​that ​industry ​back ​in ​their ​hands.”

Sports betting sites are opposed to the bill

There is opposition to the passage of AB 601 in a few corners. Surprisingly, one of the opponents is the major US online sports betting sites.

The Sports Betting Alliance, a lobby group that lists both DraftKings and FanDuel among its backers, is fighting against passage of the bill. They believe that the bill’s plan to allow state tribes to control online sports betting by placing all online servers on tribal land won’t be economically viable in the long run for Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, a conservative think tank, is also opposed to the bill. They feel that the change in the state gambling laws would violate the federal Indian Gaming Act because it provides an off-reservation monopoly to the state’s tribes. They are also of the opinion that if this bill became law, it would violate the 14th Amendment “by handing a race-based monopoly to tribal gaming operations while closing the door on everyone else.”

How would Wisconsin online sports betting work if Bill AB 601 passes?

If Wisconsin does approve Bill AB 601 and pass it into law, the state’s tribes will operate all online sports betting through servers located on tribal land. Wisconsin’s constitution stipulates that all gambling in the state must be managed by the state’s federally recognized Native American tribes. Wisconsin has offered retail sports betting since 2021. All bets must be placed in person at sites located at tribal casinos.

For online sports betting to be operational in Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers will be required to renegotiate the state’s current gambling compact with Wisconsin’s tribes to update the language so that it includes online betting regulations.

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