In the light of Supreme Court sports betting decision

New Hampshire governor and senator discuss sports betting possibilities

“This is a multiple-billion-dollar industry, and guess what? Everybody plays,” D’Allesandro said.
2018-05-18
Reading time 1:46 min
State Sen. Lou D’Allesandro explained his plans to plans to bring casino gambling into the state during a Senate Committee meeting, while Gov. Chris Sununu said he’s supportive of the concept of sports betting in New Hampshire.

In a 6-3 ruling, the high court opened the door to legal sports betting across the country by invalidating federal prohibitions that date back a quarter century which pretty much restricted the legal industry to Nevada.

Gov. Chris Sununu says he’s supportive of the concept of sports betting in New Hampshire, and he joked that he “wouldn’t bet against” state Sen. Lou D’Allesandro, who promised if re-elected in November he’d “absolutely” introduce a bill for next year’s legislative session that would legalize sports betting in the state, Concord Monitor reports

States, the gambling industry, and sports leagues will now compete for their pieces of the potential revenue pie.

State lottery Executive Director Charles McIntyre said New Hampshire could see millions in additional revenue, but exact figures are hard to come by.

“Nationally it’s $100(billion)-$400 billion a year, and if New Hampshire is a half-one percent of that, the math is the math,” McIntyre said. “It’s hundreds of millions of dollars a year of gross revenues.”

“This is a multiple-billion-dollar industry, and guess what? Everybody plays,” D’Allesandro said.

Some states like New Jersey and Delaware could start legal sports betting within months. In New England, legislation to legalize sports betting is pending in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

“It would be in the state’s best interest to control this and not let it get out of hand, which can happen,” added the longtime Democratic state senator from Manchester, who for two decades has championed unsuccessful efforts to legalize casino gambling in New Hampshire.

D’Allesandro said if he’s re-elected in November, he’ll absolutely have “something ready to go.”

But he cautioned that passing a bill to legalize sports betting won’t be easy.

“Everything here’s a tough sell because it seems like the reps know more than the people. They don’t listen to the people. That’s been the case for the last 20 years as it relates to casino gambling,” D’Allesandro said. “Will this be a tough sell? I assume so.”

But he added that “there’s no question” the Supreme Court ruling helps his cause.

“The Supreme Court said it’s legitimate. It’s the way to go, in essence. They gave it the stamp of approval, so I think that does go a long way,” D’Allesandro said.

Sununu noted D’Allesandro’s passion for the subject when talking about the prospects of sports betting in the Granite State.

“I wouldn’t bet against him,” the governor said.

Sununu said he’s “supportive of the concept” of sports betting, but said there are many unanswered questions about what a potential bill would include.

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