A Maryland bill to legalize online casinos (House Bill 1319) received a brief hearing during Tuesday’s Senate Budget and Taxation Committee meeting. No vote was taken on the bill, and a potential timeline for a vote is unknown.
The state’s legislative session ends on April 8.
As currently written, Del. Vanessa Atterbeary’s bill could bring roughly 30 mobile casino apps to Maryland. The state’s brick-and-mortar casinos would have access to at least one mobile license each, and off-track-betting facilities and bingo halls could also receive licenses. There would also be a competitive license application process, which gives initial preference to “social equity applicants.”
Maryland online casino games would be taxed at 55%, while live dealer games would be taxed at 20%. Licenses would cost $1 million and last five years.
Concerns raised
Senator Joanne Benson brought up a report (seemingly a recent February report) from Morgan State University’s Center for Data Analytics and Sports Gaming Research during Tuesday’s hearing. The report suggests Maryland could see an increase in problem gambling as a result of online casino legalization. Benson is particularly worried how that could impact “people of color” in the state.
“It’s very devastating,” Benson said of the findings.
Del. Atterbeary told Benson she had yet to view the report, but she would take a look soon. Benson also raised concerns about casino cannibalization, suggesting brick-and-mortar casino employees could lose their jobs if online casinos are allowed.
“The thing that gives me heartburn is the number of jobs that are going to be lost, and also what’s going to happen to the businesses that are close to these casinos,” Benson said.
Casino supporters dismiss those claims, saying there’s no evidence in other states that online casino legalization hurts retail casino businesses. Atterbeary also tried to address those fears in her bill, creating a $10 million fund for salary recoupment of casino employees if they lose their jobs to cannibalization.
“The Department of Labor will manage that and come up with the [regulations] on how that’s to work,” Atterbeary said.
Stripped down version?
It’s possible that Maryland legislators agree that they want to move forward with online casino legalization, but they can’t agree on the details of the bill.
If that’s the case, HB 1319 could be stripped down to only include language putting the question of whether to allow online casino legalization in front of Maryland voters in November. If a November referendum is approved, legislators could then iron out implementation details during the 2025 legislative session.
Senator Ron Watson is among those who want to see a referendum in front of voters this year, at a minimum.
“If this important and required step is not taken this session, nothing can happen until the 2026 election cycle,” Watson told US Bets via email.
If a referendum isn’t placed in front of voters, online casinos likely wouldn’t come to Maryland until 2027 at the earliest. A 2025 launch could be possible if a referendum passes later this year.
Photo: Getty Images
