It looks like not everyone is happy about Florida's current plan for legal sports betting, as an effort is underway to let voters weigh in on an alternative to the model already agreed upon by the state's lawmakers.
A proposed ballot measure has been filed with the Florida Division of Elections to create a new section in the state’s constitution for sports and event betting. If enough signatures are gathered, the measure would go on the 2022 general election ballot.
The new Section 33 of the constitution would authorize sports betting for those 21 or older “at professional sports venues and pari-mutuel facilities and statewide via online sports betting platforms by entities authorized to conduct online sports betting,” the DOE’s database shows.
Sports betting would also be allowed by the state’s Seminole Tribe under the proposed amendment.
“Requires legislative action to regulate sports betting,” a summary says. “Legislature may tax betting revenues, and all such taxes are required to supplement the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund.”
A tale of two sports-betting models
Getting a proposed amendment to Florida’s constitution on the ballot takes a lot of signatures. In this case, the number will have to be equal to eight percent of the number of votes cast in the state, and in at least 14 of its 27 congressional districts, for the last presidential election.
Even then, it is no sure thing the initiative will be successful, as proposed amendments must receive 60 percent of the vote in their favor to pass.
The initiative comes after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill in May ratifying a new gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe that includes legal sports betting. However, the model agreed upon by DeSantis and the Seminole, which is set to launch later this year, is more restrictive than the one being pitched by the would-be ballot measure.
In other words: there is another effort afoot to bring legal sports betting to Florida — but not in the way that’s already been approved by the state's lawmakers. Florida voters now may find themselves being asked in 2022 to settle a debate about how sports wagering should function in the Sunshine State.
An exclusivity issue?
While the DeSantis-supported compact allows for online and retail sports betting, it would be tightly controlled by the Seminole, which may still partner for the front-end of the business with some pari-mutuels, such as race tracks.
The tribe operates several casinos, including the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa, as well as a Hard Rock Sportsbook mobile app.
“All sports betting wagering is deemed at all times to be exclusively conducted by the Seminole Tribe at its tribal facilities where the sports books, including servers and devices to conduct the same, are located,” notes a Senate analysis of the bill that ratified the gaming compact.
There could be opportunities for other sports-betting firms to get in on the action, but all roads lead back to the Seminole and their exclusive gaming rights in the state.
It may be that exclusivity that is prompting the proposed ballot initiative, the sponsor for which is a Tallahassee-based political committee called Florida Education Champions. According to Florida Politics, “those with knowledge of the proposed constitutional amendment say it is being pushed by DraftKings and FanDuel.”
Unsurprisingly, the Seminole are opposed to the proposed amendment.
In response, Seminole Gaming spokesman Gary Bitner issued the attached statement below.
— Jim Rosica (@JimRosicaFL) June 24, 2021
-end- pic.twitter.com/uGQh5Nu4ds
Waiting on the feds
Under the terms of the agreement with the state, the Seminole can’t start taking sports bets until Oct. 15, 2021. The compact, which has already faced pushback, must also be approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior. That decision could come next month.
Still, a federal rejection is just one challenge facing the Florida compact. Another is an expected wave of litigation, including potential challenges in connection with the state’s constitution. A relatively recent amendment to that document requires voter approval for expanding casino gambling.
“I think that any scenario in which somebody is voting up on this, and they think that they are not voting for the expansion of gaming, I don't think that's an intellectually honest position to take,” Democratic Rep. Michael Grieco said during debate on the compact's implementation legislation in May. “We're going to be in court, we're going to lose, and we are going to see this on the ballot.”
Such a day may come in 2022.
The full text of the proposed amendment contains even more specifics about who exactly would be allowed to take sports bets if it is approved, with a clear preference for multi-state operators with some experience.
Online sports betting could be conducted by companies that have been authorized to operate in at least 10 states for at least one year, as well as by the Seminole. Those entities would also start taking bets no later than eight months after the effective date of the amendment. After 20 months, other firms could be allowed.
Furthermore, there would be no “tethering” under the proposed amendment.
“Entities and organizations conducting sports and event betting may use a brand of their choice and shall not be required to engage a market access partner,” the text of the amendment says.
