COLUMBUS – Ohio lawmakers punted on legalizing sports betting before their summer break, but House Speaker Bob Cupp says it’ll be a “top priority” this fall.
Despite a push from Senate Republicans, lawmakers in the Ohio House were hesitant to pass a sweeping proposal to legalize sports betting in the state without more time to vet the details.
Language that would allow Ohioans to bet on the Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Browns and Ohio State Buckeyes is now included in two separate bills: Senate Bill 176, which passed the Senate with a 30-2 vote on June 16, and House Bill 29, which Senate stuffed with last-minute sports betting changes.
Each bill takes a slightly different approach. Changes added to House Bill 29 would allow up to 65 licenses for sports betting: 25 mobile licenses and 40 licenses for brick-and-mortar stores. The original bill would have allowed 58 licenses.
More:Ohio Senate passes bill to legalize sports betting in Ohio
More:Ohio sports betting, college athlete NIL in limbo after transgender athlete amendment
What needs to happen this summer to pass Ohio sports betting bill in fall?
These are the kinds of differences that Sen. Kirk Schuring, R-Jackson Township, hopes to hash out over the summer.
“I wish we could have gotten it done by June 30,” Schuring said. “I will be working very diligently with key members of the House and key members of the interested parties to put everything in order so we can take quick action when we come back in September.”
Cupp is on board with that approach, too.
“Over the summer, we’re going to be working on that to try to finalize it so when we come back in September, that’s one of the first things we do,” Cupp said early Tuesday. “That’s our goal and that’s our hope.”
A 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision allowed states to set up their own rules on sports betting. In the years since, nearly all of Ohio’s neighbors have.
Ohio lawmakers did pass one provision of the betting bill: electronic instant bingo.
Changes added to the two-year state budget would allow veterans and fraternal organizations to offer as many as 10 machines, which can resemble slot machines, for eBingo, if they are already approved for regular bingo.
Opponents call the change a dramatic expansion of gambling in Ohio, but backers say it’s an important tool for organizations doing valuable work in their communities.
“EBingo is nothing more than an electronic version of their instant bingo pull tabs,” Schuring said.
More:Ohio lawmakers send budget with tax cuts, new school funding formula to Gov. DeWine’s desk
Cupp initially did not support adding eBingo to the budget, but he later came around to the idea.
“Budget time produces unusual and unexpected results,” Cupp said. “Our members thought it was the time to do it.”
Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
