After HB 1308 moved through Hawaii house committees with some lawmakers voting yes “with reservations,” it passed the house Tuesday (4 March) with 16 no votes. The vote beat the 6 March crossover deadline.
Ahead of the vote, legislators in opposition voiced concern about local dollars being diverted to out-of-state operators; the growth of gambling addiction; and harm to the purity of sports. They compared wagering to heroin and fentanyl, and one lawmaker contended any revenue the state would get from legal sports betting would be “dirty” money.
A companion bill, SB 1569, was deferred by the senate consumer protection/ways and means committee 26 February without discussion. It’s unclear if that decision will set the tone in the senate for other wagering bills such as HB 1308.
Sponsor Daniel Holt has carried sports betting bills for multiple sessions, but this is the first time the issue has gotten out of the house.
Tax, licence fees open for discussion
Holt said in his introduction Tuesday that he thought he finally “got it right”. His proposal would allow for four digital platforms but no brick-and-mortar sportsbooks. The proposed 10% tax rate and $250,000 application fee were stripped by the house finance committee. Both seemed to be sticking points, and at the time, committee chair Kyle Yamashita proposed removing them as a way to continue the discussion.
The senate could add both back in or decide to leave the ultimate decision up to the future regulator. Tax rates are often altered during the legislative process. Georgia lawmakers bumped a proposed 20% tax to 24% in committee Wednesday.
The licence application and renewal fees were set at $250,000 (£197,761/€238,712) in the original bill text. Representative Sue L. Keohokapu-Lee Loy said in committee that the licence fee “appears rather low for an industry that makes billions of dollars. I would love to see that licence fee go up exponentially.”
Georgia only other state moving
Hawaii is one of 11 US states that have not legalised sports betting since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was overturned in 2018. It is also one of at least eight that have had bills to consider in the 2025 legislative session.
Lawmakers in Mississippi killed a bill that would have added digital betting. Legal wagering legislation is also stalled in Minnesota. The only other state where the issue is currently moving is Georgia. The general assembly there is in a race against the clock to pass legal betting ahead of this week’s crossover deadline.
Hawaii’s senate will have two months to consider HB 1308. The legislative session is scheduled to adjourn 2 May.
Original article: https://igamingbusiness.com/sports-betting/hawaii-house-approves-sports-betting/
