Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is ready to sign a bill that would legalize sports betting in his state into law — he just needs legislators to get it to him first.
The 2024 legislative session in Minnesota began Monday in Saint Paul. Lawmakers have until May 20 to pass bills, including any that have to do with sports betting.
Walz, a member of the majority Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, has been a longtime supporter of legalizing sports betting in Minnesota and remains ready and willing to approve legislation whenever it reaches his desk.
"I think the issue still is can they get a bill through the House and Senate that meets all those constituency needs,” Walz told reporters on Monday. “If they do, I've said I will sign it."
Tribes, tracks, teams, trouble
It is, however, a big “if,” as Minnesota lawmakers have spent the last few years trying and failing to pass sports betting-related legislation.
Disagreement over who would get the licenses — Minnesota’s casino-operating Native American tribes, its racetracks, its sports teams, or a combination of some or all of those — is chiefly responsible for the impasse. It’s not yet clear if that impasse can be resolved.
Nevertheless, there will be a push in the legislature to pass something.
Republican Sen. Jeremy Miller vowed recently to introduce his "Minnesota Sports Betting Act" that would allow tribes, tracks, and teams to offer in-person wagering at their facilities. The tribes could also receive two mobile sports betting licenses apiece, one for themselves and one they could use to partner with a team or track.
“We are the only state in the region where it remains fully illegal to bet on sports,” Miller said in a press release. “This proposal is good for the tribes, it’s good for the horse racing tracks, it’s good for the professional sports teams, and most importantly, it’s good for the folks who would like to bet on sports here in Minnesota.”
Time budgeting
It looks likely that there will be competing legislation before the House again, too. At any rate, the timing this year may be ideal to pass a sports betting bill, as the budget was dealt with in 2023.
"I would guess they'll probably get close to getting something done," Walz reportedly said, according to KARE11 in Minneapolis. "It seems, to me, like this is probably the year to talk about that in a non-budget year."
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