25-03-2025
Measure to let Nebraskans vote on legalizing online sports betting in 2026 advances from committee
State Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln testifies before the General Affairs Committee on a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize online sports betting. July 31, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)
LINCOLN — The Nebraska Legislature is likely to debate whether to let voters weigh in on whether to legalize mobile sports betting next year after a legislative committee advanced the proposal.
Legislative Resolution 20CA, from State Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, seeks to allow authorized gaming operators at licensed racetracks in the state to offer online sports betting. Bettors would need to be in Nebraska at the time the wager is placed, and revenue would be directed toward property tax relief. Bostar has estimated $32 million in annual tax revenue.
The General Affairs Committee voted 6-2 to advance Bostar's resolution, with many telling the Nebraska Examiner they did so to be 'proactive' and put lawmakers in the driver's seat.
'I think that I've seen too many times when we're not proactive, when we're not trying to set the regulations and do the things that we need to do up front, then we see things that we've got to deal with later that maybe some of them don't quite fit with good regulations,' said State Sen. Stan Clouse of Kearney, who voted to advance the bill.
Opponents argued the Legislature shouldn't do the 'bidding' of gambling lobbyists and that LR 20CA and proposals like it are a 'direct threat' to Nebraska families. That includes Pat Loontjer, the executive director of Gambling with the Good Life, which has fought expanded gambling in the state for 30 years, including the trio of gambling-related ballot measures that voters passed in 2020.
'It's been five years, and I don't know how many of you have had your property taxes reduced, but no one that I've ever met,' Loontjer told reporters two weeks ago. 'It's a lie.'
State Sen. Barry DeKay of Niobrara said he isn't a gambler and isn't a big fan of constitutional amendments, but he said if the Legislature wants guardrails, then the Legislature needs to be in charge so a ballot initiative doesn't go broader.
Clouse, whose LB 421 would establish a regulatory infrastructure for online sports wagering, added: 'To do nothing is not the answer.'
'It's one of these things that society will dictate that if people want it, it'll happen, and we can't just keep kicking the can down the road,' Clouse said.
Bostar said he is encouraged by the vote, which he described as a 'good sign' for its chances.
He has repeatedly said the state is already paying the costs of expanded gambling on a societal level, such as with neighboring Iowa, without the funding to support state initiatives or fund programs to support individuals who are struggling with gambling addiction.
'If Nebraskans weren't already participating in mobile sports betting, especially to the extent that they are, I wouldn't have brought this,' Bostar said. 'But the realities are that the folks who want to do this are already doing it.'
For example, some Nebraskans in Omaha, in particular during the College World Series, senators have said, cross a bridge to Iowa to place a bet before returning to watch the game.
State Sens. Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue, the committee chair, and Jared Storm of David City were the two senators to vote against LR 20CA.
Holdcroft said his view is that while voters approved expanded gambling and casinos in November 2020, the state really has only gotten two years' worth of revenue while calls seeking help for gambling problems have spiked.
'I would like to see us go through about six to 10 years in that stage to see what not only is the revenue that we get to the state but also what is the social impact,' Holdcroft said.
State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha, committee vice chair, suggested in the Legislature's summer special session last year to allow but not require the Legislature to adopt online sports betting. Holdcroft was one of 13 lawmakers to urge no action on an identical Bostar resolution.
Cavanaugh echoed DeKay that if the Legislature doesn't act there is clearly money and interest to get the measure on the ballot and that if lawmakers want something more 'constrained,' 'then you should take a hard look at us passing something on to the ballot.'
Storm said that if supporters want the issue, then they should have to go out and get the signatures to put the choice on the ballot, not have the Legislature do it for them.
State Sen. Bob Andersen of north-central Sarpy County said he views the role of government as providing safety and security for the general public, but 'the rest of it we should get out of the way.'
He described the 'battle' on the issue as over whether lawmakers should legislate from a perspective of morality or safety and security. He said LR 20CA gives that choice to the people.
'I'm a guy that does not think that we can legislate morality,' Andersen said.
Bostar's previous constitutional amendment ultimately failed after staunch opposition from the previous General Affairs Committee chair, former State Sen. John Lowe of Kearney, Clouse's predecessor, and the defeat of a separate proposal to change the timing for which ballot measures could be sent to voters if passed during a special session.
Gov. Jim Pillen had gone as far as last summer to tell reporters he would put forth a priority bill on the topic this year. No such legislation was introduced on his behalf, though he had said the 'hardcore reality' is that Nebraskans were placing such bets.
Pillen, a former defensive back for the Cornhuskers in the 1970s, was at odds with his former coach, Tom Osborne. If passed, Pillen had said he wouldn't object to the proposals. Osborne testified against Bostar's resolution in the summer but did not do so this time around.
'I'm an advocate,' he said at the time. 'I won't stand in the way. Anybody who takes that, I'll support it.'
Freshman State Sen. Jason Prokop of Lincoln chose Bostar's resolution as his personal 2025 priority bill, increasing the chances it would be scheduled for debate.
Prokop said he did so because the issue is relatively popular through polling and that voters deserved a chance to weigh in.
'My position on it is: Let the voters decide on what they want to do,' Prokop said.
Holdcroft said with Prokop's priority he expects the resolution would be debated but that it will be up to all 49 lawmakers.
'It's going to have a battle,' Holdcroft said. 'I think a lot of people think the way I do about let's wait and see what's going to happen here.'At least 30 senators, regardless of any filibuster, would need to approve Bostar's resolution, under the Nebraska Constitution.
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