Nebraska Legislature to Mull Online Sports Betting to Ease Property Taxes

Posted on: July 15, 2024, 10:42h. 

Last updated on: July 15, 2024, 11:37h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

The Nebraska Legislature reconvenes for a special session next Thursday, July 25, to discuss possible ways to reduce property taxes for homeowners.

Nebraska Legislature casino sports betting
Sports bettors use self-service kiosks at the temporary WarHorse Casino Lincoln in Nebraska. An effort to expand sports betting online is expected to commence when the Nebraska Legislature convenes for a special session next week. (Image: NPR)

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) isn’t exactly a fan of more gambling after voters in the Cornhusker State approved commercial racetrack casinos through a statewide ballot referendum in 2020. The landmark vote also legalized sports betting, but only in person at one of the state’s licensed casinos.

Some lawmakers in the Republican-controlled unicameral chamber think allowing sports bets to be made over the internet is worthy of consideration. State Sen. Terrell McKinney (D-North Omaha), one of just 15 Democrats in the 49-seat Legislature, agrees.

“We’re missing out [on online sports betting tax revenue] because we want to be the ‘nanny state,'” McKinney told KETV.

State fiscal estimates suggest adding online sports betting could add up to $30 million a year to the government’s coffers. Though that would put only a dent in the $5.3 billion in property taxes that Nebraskans paid last year, some say it’s nonetheless a start.

Pillen remains committed to easing property tax burdens. He’s called on the Legislature to return to the Lincoln capital to consider pathways to accomplishing that goal. If they think online sports betting is in the state and consumers’ best interests, Pillen says he’ll put his personal opposition aside. Voters in neighboring Missouri will decide the fate of an online sports betting referendum in November. 

Casinos Want Online Sports Betting

When Nebraskans approved casino gambling at the state’s six horse racetracks, the ballot measure was designed to save and reignite the state’s waning horse racing industry. The referendum proposed limiting sports betting to retail sportsbooks to require bettors to physically visit a casino where they’d ideally spend money on food and beverage, and possibly play a slot machine, table game, or bet on the ponies.

Gaming industry experts, however, say many bettors simply utilize offshore, illegal sports betting websites instead of taking the time to travel to a licensed retail operation. In the states where retail and online sportsbooks operate, more than 90% of the action is typically facilitated over the internet.

Ho-Chunk, Inc., the commercial economic development firm of The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska will open the $250 million WarHorse Casino Omaha next month. Ho-Chunk is additionally constructing a similarly-sized WarHorse-branded casino resort in Lincoln and plans to redevelop the shuttered Atokad Downs in South Sioux City in the coming years. Ho-Chuk has those development rights through its partnership with the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association.

Ho-Chunk CEO Lance Morgan says adding online sports betting would be beneficial to all, from bettors to casinos, to the state, and to homeowners.

It’s additive. It’s not a tax shift,” Morgan explained. “We think that’s a pretty viable option. We’ve been proposing that to be part of this special session.”

Morgan said polling conducted by Ho-Chunk concluded that 65% of Nebraskans support expanding sports gambling to the internet.

Possible Referendum 

For Nebraskans to be afforded regulated online sports betting options, voters would need to again pass a statewide ballot referendum to amend the state’s constitution to allow such wagering. During the upcoming special session, 60% supermajority support from the Legislature is required to forward the sports betting question to voters.

Only a simple majority support from voters would be needed to authorize online sportsbooks. Nebraska’s Constitution limits ballot referendums to being conducted only during even-numbered years, meaning if the special sessions doesn’t agree on an online sports betting referendum this year, the matter cannot be considered until at least 2026.