No Betting Sports On Sundays & Holidays?

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hacheman@therx.com
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No Sports Betting On Sundays? Tennessee Considers Bizarre Rule

Amendment to ban betting on Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Sundays shot down

by Brian Pempus
March 26, 2019



A hearing on Tuesday in Nashville featured the most advanced discussion yet of Tennessee’s sports bettingefforts, but some tall hurdles remain ahead of a potential committee vote in the coming weeks.


The legislation, House Bill 1, originally was written for statewide mobile and brick-and-mortar sports betting locations sprinkled around the state. Tennessee doesn’t have any casinos or racinos, so the activity would have been regulated under a new state gaming commission.



That was the situation a mere two weeks ago, before amendments were unveiled last week to change the legislation to mobile-only sports wagering, and instead of creating a new state agency to oversee the gambling, the Tennessee Lottery, which has experience with its own app, would be the regulator.


Backers of Tennessee’s sports betting efforts are eyeing a sports betting market worth nearly $150 mm each year in taxable revenues, based off roughly $3 billion in handle.




Return to retail?


Fast forward to today, and there was discussion about re-adding brick-and-stick sports betting shop provisions to the legislation, as well as the creation of a brand new regulatory body. That pitch came from a Nashville Democrat. The legislation is sponsored by a Knoxville Democrat.


State Rep. Rick Staples, the sponsor, had some complimentary words for his fellow Democrat, but ultimately he disagreed with re-inserting language for retail sportsbooks. Staples doesn’t believe it’s the most effective way for Tennessee to venture into sports betting, given its lack of commercial casino gambling.


Rep. Powell, apparently advocating on behalf of small businesses in the state, argued that the $750k license fee was also too steep. He wanted it lowered to $75k. That change was also rejected by the 19 members of the House State Committee present during Tuesday’s high-stakes debate. Furthermore, a proposal to remove the license cap (currently at 10) was also shot down.


In a win for the legislation, a proposed change to mandate use of official league sports betting data for “live betting” was also rejected (for now). It’s unclear if that meant in-game betting, but it’s a fair assumption.



Banning betting on holidays, Sundays?


In what could be the most unusual proposed sports betting provision in the country since PASPA was overturned in May 2018, the committee narrowly avoided amending the bill to ban betting on major holidays (Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving), as well as on Sundays from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m.


Such a rule would effectively prohibit the bulk of gambling on NFL games, the most popular form of sports betting in the country. No representatives of the Tennessee Titans were present Tuesday to weigh in on the measure.


The amendment, which would have dealt a serious blow to the legislation, was shot down by a vote of 10 nays to 9 yays. Lawmakers who voted for it likely are opposed to sports gambling in general, so that could end up being the final committee vote on the bill. The margin of support is razor thin.


The discussion of the Sunday betting ban occured in the wake of testimony that is familiar to those who have watched or listened to state-level online gambling debates in recent years. An anti-gambling advocate, who didn’t say whether he was affiliated with any organization, testified to the committee that betting over mobile devices would be as addictive as “crack cocaine.” He also used the term “electronic heroin.”


When it was on Staples’ to speak to those concerns, he said that he found the comparison to be fear mongering. He also defended his motivations for introducing and pushing the legislation, briefly talking about his childhood and the economic plight that he saw around him. He was not happy with the comparison of regulated sports betting to drugs. “I would never do anything to be as low as to bring something equated to crack cocaine” to Tennessee, Staples said. It’s highly unusual for sports betting efforts in any state to become this personal.




Committee growing impatient


It’s now fair to say that the legislation is languishing in the committee. It’s been with the State Committee since Feb. 27, and discussions have been tabled multiple times.


Some lawmakers were ready to vote on the bill in its entirety (not just amendments) on Tuesday. However, others said that it would be premature to hold the vote now.


One Republican became pretty displeased with what he was seeing:



Ultimately, 13 committee members voted to delay a vote, which Staples was accepting of after the tense debate. The “heel of the calendar” means that the legislation moves to the back of the line. As of Tuesday, there were 23 bills in total on the State Committee’s calendar.


How fast will the committee move through the bills? It’s hard to tell, but on Tuesday the committee tackled just three of the bills, including the sports betting proposal. The slow pace on display might be a little misleading considering how complex the sports betting efforts are.


Tennessee’s ongoing legislative session ends in mid-May, so the window is quickly closing for the state to pass the bill this session. Sports betting proponents also have to deal with a governor who isn’t fond of state-sanctioned gambling, though reports indicate he is warming to the idea.


Despite the progress made in 2019, it’s looking like 2020 is a better bet for Tennessee sports betting passage.
 

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Hypocritical, backwards and absurd.

Sunday is just another day of the week.
 

hacheman@therx.com
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I assume they were trying to appease everyone.

Legalize sports Betting for those in favor if it, and limit it kind of like alcohol on some days, for those against.

Regardless, an idiotic idea.
 

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so ...can you bet on nfl on saturday??? would be funny if you could bet college but not nfl
 

FreeRyanFerguson.com
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Gives you a glimpse into the Bible belt thinking....
It's a church belt, not a Bible belt. People don't read their Bibles. Sabbath is on Saturday....if someone happens to think it's wrong to take part in recreation on the Sabbath, they don't even have the right day.
 
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Sunday’s LOL


do they know what goes on

On Sunday’s ?


Maybe not too fond of the NfL. We had a handful of people here who said they would never watch again......
 

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All the bibles in Tennessee must be worn the fuk out from all the thumpin they get. Lords prayer before games could be the lubricant to get the legislation past their dry twats
 
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I remember the discussion when Virginia first allowed horse race betting in the state as to where to put the track and the 5 OTB's that were approved.. Virginia Beach officials wanted the track somewhere within the city, but that didn't happen... So when it came to the OTB locations, the Mayor at that time and city council would NOT ALLOW an otb in the city.. Words from the mayor were: "no track, no OTB".. The owners wanted it so badly here, but had to settle for the city next door Chesapeake (Skrink's old city). I don't think in my lifetime this state will allow sports betting sadly!
 

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