Some Ohio lawmakers feel it is time to expand gaming in the Buckeye State once again and they have set their eyes on online casinos.
To that end, Senator Niraj Antani filed a bill he authored to legalize all types of Ohio iGaming.
The possible Ohio online casino industry Senator Antani envisions would include virtually every casino game that can be played in person from poker to roulette to slot machines, but not all are as excited about the possibility. There is a divide on expanding gaming which hurts the odds of the new gaming bill passing.
Ohio iGaming bill introduced by Senator Antani
The newly filed Ohio iGaming bill is known as SB 312 and it was filed by Senator Antani last week. It proposes all casino games be legalized in a digital setting for Ohio residents to play, as Antani explained to NBC4.
“I think you’re going to see poker, you’re going to see roulette, you’re going to see slot machines, things like that. Blackjack, any sort of card game [or] table game, you’ll see allowed. That’s the idea here.”
There are some unique aspects to the bill.
First, online casinos would be taxed at 15%. This is generally standard overall, but it is 5% lower than the 20% tax rate for Ohio sports betting. That would make Ohio the only state with a lower tax rate for online casinos compared to sports betting if the legislation passed.
The bill would also limit Ohio to a maximum of five online casino operators in order to avoid oversaturation. Inversely, Ohio sports betting has no cap on how many operators.
Despite these strange quirks to the bill, it still has some fairly regular fees attached for operators. There is a license application fee of $100,000 as well as another required $300,000 licensing fee further down the application process. Additionally, there is a problem gambling fund fee that is no less than $250,000. Oversight of a possible Ohio online casino market would be handled by the Ohio Casino Control Commission.
Once the license is awarded, it lasts just one year. This means operators will need to pay around $500,000 annually to stay open in Ohio.
As to be expected with a new bill aimed at gambling expansion, there is a lot of disagreement among Ohio lawmakers which might kill the bill before it gets off the ground.
The new Ohio online casino bill has been polarizing among lawmakers and stakeholders
Gambling expansion is never easy, regardless of which state is attempting to do so. Gaming is a polarizing subject and the case of Ohio trying to legalize online casinos is no different.
Lawmakers such as Ohio Senator Al Landis are against any sort of gambling expansion regardless of the benefits. When it comes to digital gaming, there will always be other retail operators who are concerned about losing market share to a new form of gaming. In Ohio, JACK Entertainment which operates a retail casino has loudly objected to iGaming for that reason.
Additionally, a group of retail businesses are working together to fight Ohio online casino legalization. According to David Corey, the Executive Vice President of the Bowling Centers Association of Ohio:
“It is definitely worrisome for our clients. It’s hard to tell what the impact would be on the jobs front, but we know it can’t be good — taking people out of locations, keeping them in their homes on their phones.”
“…The whole entire hospitality community says, ‘Absolutely not, no way. We will fight this tooth and nail until you give something to the bricks and mortar locations.”
Senator Antani believes these concerns are unfounded:
“This is not going to affect them at all. This is simply another entertainment option on people’s phones, just like every other game they play, just like every movie that people watch.”
This is not the only time iGaming has been considered in recent memory with most parties split. There was an Ohio Study Commission formed to develop a report on the future of gaming in the state. Within that long report, there was no topic discussed as often as iGaming. However, there was also a clear lack of consensus.
Current casino operators who already have invested in online casino platforms obviously voiced support as did a handful of lawmakers who value the tax revenue that would come from legalization. Others took their chance to object to online casinos.
Despite the lack of consensus opinion, there was one telling detail. The Ohio Study Commission made no official recommendations on iGaming in their report which points to the lack of support for the bill. Based on current trends, it seems it might be too soon for Ohio to legalize online casinos.
What are the odds this Ohio iGaming bill will pass?
Despite the efforts being made, it still seems like a long shot that Ohio online casinos will be legalized. Yes, the lack of consensus among lawmakers is one reason it is unlikely iGaming will be added in Ohio. But there is another problem that relates to the Senator who wrote the bill.
The author of this SB312 internet casino bill — Senator Antani — is term-limited which means he will not be in office after he leaves in 2025. That means the bill is now time-sensitive and must be passed as soon as possible. Of course, someone else could step into the role of gaming expansion advocate once Senator Antani is gone. But at this time, that is an uncertain future.
With Senator Antani’s departure in sight, it seems more likely that this bill is more about beginning a conversation about Ohio online casinos and better educating lawmakers on the potential of iGaming in the Buckeye State.
The first hearing for this new iGaming bill is expected to happen in November.