The Seattle Times newspaper issued a report on Monday which discusses House Bill 1975. The bill was introduced by Eric Pettigrew who is a member of the Washington House of Representatives and who decided to introduce this bill last Friday. The bill is not due to be discussed by the Commerce and Gaming Committee starting tomorrow.
What Led To The Bill?
The decision to introduce House Bill 1975 was mainly affected by the fact that PASPA (Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act) was invalidated last May. In short, when PASPA was introduced, it made sports betting illegal across the country. Its primary purpose was to make sure that betting doesn’t affect sportspeople, clubs, or leagues, as it could lead to setting up matches. However, it was invalidated last May because there are better ways to control betting.
Once the act was introduced, the only state that had some kind of sports betting available was Nevada. However, after the invalidation, Delaware, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Mississippi, Rhode Island, and New Jersey joined and started offering this service to sports betting aficionados. All of these states were quick to act as they saw the potential in this activity to create additional jobs and more revenue.
The Other States Are Considering This Possibility
Some have made more progress than others. Washington is currently the next most probable candidate to introduce betting on sports. According to the bill, officials from Washington will speak to the leaders of the tribal casinos that exist in the state in order to reach an agreement about this activity. Everyone who wants to place bets in this state will have to be physically present on the premises of the tribal casino.
However, according to Chris Stearns, the ratification of this bill could also lead to removing these boundaries in the future and enabling sports betting enthusiasts to enjoy this activity across the state. Furthermore, Stearns added that the limits were not very big and that the bill didn’t say a lot. He added that it is up to the Indian tribes to negotiate a deal with the governor, as the bill left a lot to them instead of making specific boundaries. To sum up, it will definitely be interesting to see what the future of sports betting will look like, not only in Washington but in the US as well. There are a lot of options available for every state, and a lot of money is already in the game.
