The Grand Canyon State completes its final lap of approvals for its new legal sports betting law after receiving the go-ahead from the US Department of the Interior. The market is expected to be live in time for the NFL season.
About a month ago, Governor Doug Ducey of Arizona rubber-stamped a new gambling expansion bill into law. The said gambling expansion bill, House Bill 2772, details the launch of statewide legal sports betting in the Grand Canyon State, which comes tied to a new tribal-state compact. As standard practice, whenever a tribal-state compact is in play at the state level, the bill or rather compact has to get a second approval from the US Department of the Interior (DoI) before taking effect.
The DoI has finally ratified the compact, and thus, the path is clear for Arizona to start rolling out sports betting on both pro-level and collegiate sports and daily fantasy sports. So, Arizona sports fans across the state will soon enjoy online, mobile and retail sports betting facilitated by tribal casinos, professional sports teams, and off-track betting venues.
After the good news from the DoI, Gov. Ducey voiced his delight for Arizona’s new stride towards expanded gaming in the following statement:
Quote“Gaming creates thousands of jobs for Arizonans, it generates tax revenue that benefits key areas of our communities, and it draws visitors to our state. The tribal-state gaming compact amendment, along with its associated legislation, was the culmination of a multi-year process, and I was proud to work with all the stakeholders on this historic accomplishment. The tribal-state gaming compact and its associated legislation now is officially in effect — thank you to everyone who worked to make this happen.”
Hopes For Launch in Time for the NFL Season
HB 2772 was passed by Arizona legislators back in February with an emergency clause to fast-track the launch of legal sports betting – an approach that states like Maryland and Nebraska have recently adopted as well. After the state governor signed off on the bill following lengthy compact negotiations with local Native American tribes, the baton was passed to the DoI.
At that time, the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) switched to high-gear, and it started by planning for an expedited debut date for the launch of sports betting. The department has since been working on setting licensing fees, taxation rates and drafting the types of sports wagers that will be permitted in the Grand Canyon State.
After Gov. Duce’s signature last month, ADG Director Ted Vogt commented on the steps the department was taking, saying:
Quote“The department is already hard at work drafting rules and procedures to ensure the safety and security of the Arizona betting public as we look towards implementing event and fantasy sports wagering in the months ahead.”
Now that the Federal DoI – Office of Indian Gaming has given the nod to the tribal-state compacts, it has a 90-day window to publish the compacts in the Federal Register formally. The ADG, on the other hand, has 60 days to draft the rules and provide a framework to launch and run a legal sports betting market successfully. According to statutory requirements, the clock started ticking for the ADG from the day Gov. Ducey signed the emergency bill.
When the ADG finalizes the rule drafting process, there’s also a public comment period that will follow to take in feedback from the public. The next step after public participation is an amendment period; then, the process will be wrapped up with the announcement of a debut date.
As for sportsbook operators, the approval exercise is already underway, with six professional sports venues given the OK to launch online sportsbooks as soon as the market is officially opened. The six facilities in question are:
Even so, the license awarding procedure to prospective sportsbook operators is still expected to take a couple of months, and to date, no official launch date has been set yet. Nonetheless, based on the way things are going, sources close to the matter expect the legal sports betting market to go live by the end of August or early September. Should it happen, the sports betting market premier will be right in time for the start of the 2021 NFL season.
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