Rhode Island nears igaming as bill heads to Governor’s desk
Final day of General Assembly and Senate sessions yields success for enabling legislation, however concerns raised about immediacy and potential monopoly
Rhode Island legislators passed two gambling-related bills on a frantic final day of the current legislatives session, one consenting igaming and the other authorizing betting on college sports.
On Thursday afternoon (June 15), members of the Rhode Island General Assembly voted 57-11 to greenlight House bill 6348, which relates to igaming, later voting 56-11 in favor of approving Senate bill 948, which had been signed off by the Senate on June 13.
In the same session, senators voted 29-7 in favor of passing House bill 6313, which legalizes betting on certain college sports, echoing a prior House vote of 60-10 in favor of the bill on June 13.
Concurrent legislation contained in Senate bill 3 had already been passed on June 14 by the House, having been greenlit by the Senate way back in March.
Both sets of legislation have been passed to Governor Dan McKee to either veto or sign into law within the next six days.
The legislation relating to igaming is perhaps the most eye-catching of the two bills and would, if signed into law, make Rhode Island the first state to legalize igaming this year, and only the seventh to allow it in the entire US.
Under HB 6348 and SB 948, Bally’s, which operates the state’s two casino properties, would work with IGT to develop a statewide igaming platform, offering islanders online slots and table games, as well as live dealer.
Distinct from state laws on sports betting, igaming would be subject to an age gate of 21, and not 18, as applies to both retail and online sports betting in the state. The bill sets a launch date for the platform of April 1, 2024.
In a heated final day of debate, House legislators questioned the speed of the passage of the legislation, which was only introduced in mid-May, as well as the potential monopoly it might create for Bally’s as the island’s sole igaming operator.
Representative David Morales was one of those questioning the perceptibly accelerated timeframe.
“I think this is being rushed… I don’t think we’ve had enough time to vet this specific issue in question because this is a significant piece of legislation that we are considering,” Morales said in the debate.
Meanwhile, Morales’ colleague, Representative Teresa Tanzi cited the example of other states where an expanded market for igaming exists.
“I know other states that do this, they have a multitude of options for their folks,” Tanzi said.
“So, if we really wanted to just bring sports or igaming to the residents of Rhode Island because we thought it was such a great idea and it had nothing to do with money, that we would just open this up and have a multitude of different options for our citizens to choose from.
“But we haven’t. We chose one. We chose Bally’s, without a process or bidding or any of that,” she added.
Proposed by the President of Rhode Island Senate Dominick J. Ruggerio, Senate bill 3 and its companion House bill 6313, authored by Representative Jacquelyn Baginski, both amend current state laws regarding video lottery games, table games and sports wagering.
The legislation allows betting on collegiate tournaments that take place in Rhode Island, or which involve Rhode Island collegiate teams, regardless of where they occur. However, bets on individual performance statistics of college athletes would remain prohibited under the revised laws.