
North Carolina is set to be the latest state to legalize sports betting. The bill was signed by the state governor Roy Cooper earlier this week and it sets the ball in motion for the Tar Heel State to permit sports betting as early as January next year.
This comes one week after the North Carolina state legislature gave its seal of approval to the HB 347 bill. This would allow for up to 12 online sportsbooks to receive licenses to operate within the state. The sportsbooks would have to pay a fee of $1 million for the license that would allow them to operate within the Tar Heel State for five years.
North Carolina has previously been permitting sports betting in person at a number of tribal casinos for over two years, but the online sportsbooks will add an extra level of convenience for sports fans. The bill also makes the provision for up to eight sporting organizations to partner with betting options for hosting physical sportsbooks within the state.
The North Carolina Lottery Commission has been given the task to set and regulate the fledgling online betting industry in the state. This means establishing the legislation required to facilitate the legality of sports betting while ensuring that taxpayers benefit from the online wagering.
The application process for operators to receive licenses is expected to get underway as soon as possible with the launch date for legal sports betting in North Carolina to go ahead as early as January 8, 2024.
With a population of over 10 million, North Carolina is the 10th most populous state in the nation, and it has maintained a good pedigree for sports both at professional and college-level.
This has meant that analysts have estimated that the sports betting handle in North Carolina could reach just under $7 billion by the end of the second year of operation. This would be expected to rise to top $100 per year by the fifth year with the state’s coffers being boosted by a healthy 18% tax on any revenues made from betting on sport.
It’s been a remarkable breakthrough for sports betting to actually become legalized in North Carolina. Sports fans in the Tar Heel State have had to watch neighboring states such as Tennessee and Virginia give the green light to legal sports betting, while their own proposals for the same failed by just a single vote in the 2021/22 session.
Thankfully, the initiative didn’t falter and the House passed the bill proposed by State Representative Jason Saine in March by 64 votes to 45. The bill eventually passed through the state Senate in May and added the provisions for online horse racing betting, and increased the rate of tax from 14% to 18%.
This makes North Carolina one of the most progressive states in the south-east for sports betting legalization, and the first legal NC online sportsbooks should hopefully be in place by the NFL playoffs.
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