Hawaii online sports betting bill looking likely to pass as governor backs it

Mobile sports betting could come to Hawaii, as Governor Josh Green has said he won’t veto or push back on the online sports betting bill, as long as it has safeguards.

House Bill 1308 would allow for sports wagering online, as well as establish “licensing requirements”, “excise tax”, as well as a fund titled the Problem Gambling Prevention and Treatment Special Fund. It would also specify that “legal sports wagering and fantasy sports contests shall not be considered contests of chance or gambling.”

On top of this, it would also give the Department of Law Enforcement (DLE) to “perform criminal history record checks” on any entity trying to get into the sports wagering business in Hawaii.

This is a change from the original pitch, which would have used the Department of Consumer Protection. After concerns were raised, the Senate has swapped it to the DLE, which appears better suited to handle being the watchdog.

As of April 24, the bill was “scheduled for conference committee” today, April 25. However, the legislative session runs until May 2, giving a definitive time limit to lawmakers in the state. Speaking with Hawaii News Now, Green said:

“As long as there’s some safeguards with gambling addiction services and so on, if the legislature goes to the full way and passes it, I’ll likely let it become law.”

It’s not entirely supported, with the island’s Republicans being joined by a progressive Democrat, Kim Coco Iwamoto, who said:

“I just hope that there will be some consideration given to mitigating instead of just looking to allow for profits to be generated for these companies.”

Despite some critics – with one calling the bill “a turd” – Representative Daniel Holt has remained steady in their support for the bill, citing the increase of jobs and injection of cash into the economy. Again, from Hawaii News Now, Holt said:

“It’s possible to increase our job count by 6,000 jobs and a benefit of $250 million plus to our economy.”

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