Ron Stephens, R-Savannah, a longtime proponent of legalized gambling, said the tax benefits of sports betting are a good reason for lawmakers to go with the constitutional amendment approach.Ī constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote of the state House of Representatives and Senate before it can go to the voters, a more difficult obstacle than bills that only need a simple majority to pass.īut Stephens said emphasizing where the tax money would go if sports passing comes to Georgia could be enough of a winning argument in an election year to secure those two-thirds majorities. Guest and others also pointed to the tax revenue the state could generate from sports betting, which under all of the various legislative proposals that have been considered would go to the Georgia’s hugely popular HOPE Scholarships and Pre-Kindergarten programs. “This legislation would drive fan engagement for our state’s professional sports teams,” Guest wrote in an email to Capitol Beat. The list includes the neighboring states of Tennessee and North Carolina. Supreme Court decision authorized states to take that step. Marshall Guest, the chamber’s senior vice president, said 38 states have legalized sports betting since a 2018 U.S.

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