Putting the Fate of Missouri Sports Betting Into the Hands of Voters?

• Four voting initiatives to legalize sports betting have been submitted to the Missouri Secretary of State
• Initiatives will legalize online and retail sports betting for casinos, professional sports teams in the state
• Sets a launch date of no later than Dec. 31, 2025

Missouri sports betting has been bogged down by state lawmakers for the last several years, so one group is hoping to place its fate in the hands of Missouri voters.

Four sports betting initiative petitions were submitted on Sept. 9 to the Missouri Secretary of State. The petitions all seek to legalize Missouri retail and online sports betting, with state casinos and professional sports franchises eligible for licenses. Each petition could potentially find its way onto the November 2024 general election ballot.

It may be the easiest path to sports betting legalization, as efforts in the past two years have been bogged down by lawmakers who also hope to legalize video lottery terminals (VLTs).

Put Sports Betting In the Hands of the Voters

The petitions, 2024-135, 2024-136, 2024-137, and 2024-138 were filed by Alixandra Cossette, an attorney who previously filed nine sports betting petitions to legalize in 2021. Each petition sets a sports betting tax rate of 10%, retail licenses at a price of $250,000, and online sports betting licenses at $500,000. License holders will have to pay a license renewal fee every five years.

Each Missouri professional sports franchise and casino will be eligible for a retail and online sports betting license. Missouri sports franchises and casinos are eligible to partner with sports betting operators for their programs.

The only difference in each of the petitions is the number of potentially awarded standalone online sports betting licenses in the state, which range from one to four.

But how can the petitions be approved for the 2024 ballot? A public comment period is now open for voters to comment on the petition. At the closing of the public comment period, the Missouri Secretary of State will then decide to award or deny approval of each of the petitions. If approved by the Secretary of State, sports betting proponents can then begin to collect registered voters’ signatures to place the question on the 2024 ballot.

To be placed on the ballot at least 8% of registered voters’ signatures in six of eight Missouri districts must be collected, which is a minimum of 171,592 signatures.

If approved in the general election, the petitions set a sports betting launch date of Dec. 31, 2025, at the latest.

Missouri Sports Betting Details

If approved, the sports betting age in Missouri would be set at 21. If awarded a retail sports betting license, professional sports franchises could host a sportsbook within their arena or stadium, or they could construct a standalone sportsbook in a special “sports district” within 400 yards of the facility. Sports betting advertisements and promotions would be restricted to this special district, according to the petitions.

Sports betting tax revenues will first reimburse expenses incurred by the state for sports betting, will fund the Compulsive Gambling Prevention Fund until it has $5 million in assets, and any remaining revenue  will support elementary, secondary, and higher education in the state.

If there are more applicants than allowed standalone online sports betting licenses, the state will award licenses based on the applicant’s history of generating sports betting tax revenue in at least 10 jurisdictions.

Potentially Side Stepping Missouri Lawmakers

Efforts to legalize Missouri sports betting have failed in the Senate and House of Representatives for the last several years. At the heart of the debate is the legalization of VLTs, electronic gambling machines that are currently located in many Missouri truck stops and restaurants.

At least three bills were floated earlier this year to legalize sports betting, two even pre-filed in December before the January 2023 of the state’s legislative session. Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-21) and Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer (R-34) both pre-filed sports betting bills in December.

Hoskins’ pre-filed bill (SB 1) tried to legalize both retail and online sports betting, but included the legalization of VLTs throughout the state. His bill never made it to the Senate floor after it was killed by a Senate committee.

Luetkemeyer’s bill (SB 30) also attempted to legalize online and retail sports betting in the state, but did not include a VLT element. Luetkemeyer’s bill sets the sports betting tax rate at 10% of adjusted gross gaming revenue. His bill made it to the Senate floor after successfully navigating through a number of committees, but quickly became mired in 12 proposed amendments during eight hours of discussion.

Hoskins actually attempted to amend SB 30 to include VLTs during the hearing, but his amendment was voted down. Luetkemeyer eventually pulled his bill from the Senate floor without a vote taken on the legislation.

Missouri sports franchises have spoken out on the need to legalize sports betting and divorce the issue of VLTs from the discussion. St. Louis Cardinals President Bill DeWitt told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he supported a referendum to put a sports betting question on the general election ballot.

“We’re going to take a serious look at that,” DeWitt told the Post-Dispatch. “I think there are a few things we may push on here at the end. We’re just so frustrated. It’s working against our fans and our citizens who overwhelmingly support it.”

Representatives for the Kansas City Royals also supported the idea of a referendum question for the November 2024 general election.