Indiana moves closer to legalizing DFS
Raft of states including West Virginia and Arizona push ahead with enabling legislationÂ
Indiana joins a growing number of states on the cusp of passing daily fantasy sports legislation after a bill hearing in the House Public Policy Committee earlier this week. [private]
The bill, SB 339, would explicitly legalize DFS in the state and passed out of the Senate earlier this month with a majority vote of 38-11.
Discussions at this weekâs hearing centred around whether the minimum player age should be 18 or 21, and whether DFS should be categorized as a game of skill or a game of chance.
If passed into law, the bill would allow the stateâs racinos and off track betting operations to launch their own DFS sites or join forces with an existing company.
SB 339 would also require companies to pay license fees from $175,000 to $335,000 per year, although amendments are expected before Committee votes on the bill next week.
The news comes after West Virginia made similar progress, with lawmakers in the Senate passing HB 529 with a slim majority of 18-16.
The bill would explicitly legalize DFS, but would not require operators to pay any license fees or tax rates in return for offering contests to players in the state.
The bill now heads to the House of Delegates for consideration.
Arizona, one of only a few states where daily fantasy sports is explicitly illegal, is also on the cusp of legalizing the activity.
Yesterday, the State Judiciary Committee voted 5-2 in favor of amending SB 1515 to allow daily fantasy sports operators to ply their trade in the state.
Over in Georgia, Senator Renee Unterman has also introduced a bill seeking to improve consumer protections for the 1.5 million DFS players in the state.
Under the bill, players must be at least 18 years of age and sets minimum standards for operators, who would have to pay an initial license fee of $50,000 plus a $10,000 annual top up fee.