Colorado Remains Cold and Clinical Towards Sports Betting Legalization

Centennial State Colorado has set its sights on legalizing sports betting, becoming one of the first in the second wave of American states interested in tapping into the highly-lucrative business.

 

A May 2017 survey entitled Economic Impact of Legalized Sports Betting indicated that Colorado might bring in upwards of $300 million by legalizing sports betting in the state. While the move to consider legalization is a move in the positive direction, insiders believe the approach may be counterproductive and not-so-profitable, given the too pragmatic and cynical approach adopted by Government officials.

 

Based on opinions issued by Colorado State Attorney General Cynthia Coffman’s office, government officials plan to implement a statute to fast-track the legalization of sports betting within the state boundaries. The Colorado Department Of Revenue (DOR), in particular, is preparing to oversee this project to completion. The DOR has also expressed its desire to be appointed as the sole governing authority for sports betting, online gambling, and horse racing in the state.

 

As part of its preparation, the DOR is charting a list of challenges and problems law enforcement agencies, casino operators, and government agencies may face post-legalization of sports betting. The objective of this exercise is to provide for effective countermeasures that can offset these potential challenges. The DOR plans to establish four separately managed sub-divisions under the sports betting department, namely Racing, Enforcement, Gaming, and Lottery, in order to make management and administration of the department easier.

 

The DOR has also drafted a list of 14 regulatory requirements that every participant in the Colorado sports betting industry must mandatorily comply with if they wish to gain a license to operate in the state. These regulatory requirements cover a variety of considerations. For one, the proposed tax rate for sports betting has been set in the range of  6.5% to 16%, with provisions for annual tax adjustments. Authorities in the DOR call for low tax rates, in the hope of discouraging players from seeking black market operators, even at the cost of generating low revenues.

 

Then there’s the requirement for mobile sports betting, which states that all mobile gambling service providers must have facilities within the state and must conduct regular server maintenance within state boundaries only. The objective is to have a degree of control of technology and data management to prevent cybersecurity crimes from plaguing the state. However, doing this may limit the facility and technology growth of the state, say experts.

 

The DOR has also shelved the idea of integrity fees for the state, believing in the power of its own regulatory framework. The Department now requires a sports group to prove their good intentions if they wish to implement integrity fees during betting.