Minnesota Inches Closer To Sports Betting

Lawmakers in Minnesota’s state House have now approved House Bill 778, which articulates detail for the introduction of a native online sports betting sector, after a protracted legislative review. The proposal outlines a framework for the Gopher State’s eleven officially recognized Indian tribes to offer mobile sportsbooks.

Originally, HB 778 sought to initiate sports betting activity for both tribal and commercial enterprises, however, after a third debating session between officials of the Committee for Finance and Policy, the bill was edited to just denote Native American input. Complementing the bill’s passage through the House and now Senate chambers is HB 167, which was also amended to exclude commercial entities from entering Minnesota’s fledgling online sports betting marketplace.

The bill has been constructed to be as inclusive as possible, determining that all tribal groups in the state should be afforded the opportunity to grab a piece of the action. Two ‘master sports betting licenses’ will exist, which will be allocated to consortiums who facilitate the presence of at least two Indian tribes. Each ‘super license’ will be awarded to an organization based on either side of the Highway 94 divide, ultimately creating a northern and southern version of the license. The operator which secures the northern license will be able to collaborate with up to seven tribal groups (the exact amount based in this region), whilst the southern can partner up to four (again, the exact number of tribal groups in this part of the state). These eleven tribal groups would be able to offer mobile sports betting platforms, as an offshoot of their ‘parent’s’ super license.

The proposal suggests that any bet placed at a casino or retail venue on tribal land would not incur a tax on the sportsbook operator, but any activity that occurs online would be susceptible to a 10% taxation levy.

Although the introduction of a sports betting industry in the state seems imminent, there is still work to do prior, with Gov. Tim Waltz still having to agree refreshed tribal compacts with each local Native American group in order to secure the implementation of a Class III sports betting approach.