Texas Lawmaker Introduces Gambling Expansion Resolution

Last week, Texas turned its top two statewide offices blue, and at least one Republican is seemingly celebrating the news, pre-filing an attempt to bring casino gaming and sports betting to the Lone Star State.

State Rep. Charlie Geren, a Fort Worth Republican, filed House Joint Resolution 52 Monday, which would give Texans the right to vote on whether they want to bring those types of gambling to the state.

This is not the first time Geren has pitched bringing sports betting and casinos to Texas, but it will be the first time without outgoing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a staunch anti-gambling advocate, blocking the path while presiding over the Senate.

Patrick and Gov. Greg Abbott lost their reelection bids last week, to be replaced by Democrats Gina Hinojosa as governor and Vikki Goodwin as Patrick’s successor. And Goodwin, as a legislator, has supported the notion of letting the voters weigh in on legalized gambling, per an NBC Houston report.

Geren’s resolution would put the question to voters on the Nov. 2, 2027, ballot, with voter approval giving lawmakers the authority to legalize and regulate both.

The resolution has some pre-built guardrails in the language, including no more than 10 casino facilities, initial casino license terms of at least 40 years, and a tax on casino and sports wagering revenue capped at 15%.

Casino gambling would be limited to physical properties, leaving online casinos out of the equation.

Gearing up for expansion

Speaking to 105.3 The Fan in Dallas last week, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones — who has long supported the idea of expanding the gambling menu in Texas — seemed primed for a vote.

“It is a plus in my mind with the best place in the world for sports, Texas, for us to have the gaming — and hopefully the new turnover, you might say, in the politics will see it that way,” he said.

Currently, Texans are limited to the state lottery, horse racing, Indian gaming establishments, and charity bingo for legal gambling.

The changeover at the top of the political world in Texas has not gone unnoticed by gambling operators.

During last week’s earnings call, Penn Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden said his company was set to ramp up lobbying efforts.

“We do not talk about it every call because it just hasn’t been a topic of conversation — not even hot, it hasn’t even really been warm for a variety of reasons — but we’ve been making investments in the state of Texas for decades,” Snowden said, per an SBC Americas report. He pointed to a pair of racetracks that Penn operates, Sam Houston in Houston and Retama Park near San Antonio. “We have been operating in the gaming space through horse racing in Texas for a long time. We have got two great assets there and we are ready to play offense.”

Geren has been down this road before. In 2025, he filed HJR 137, a similar proposal. It landed in the House State Affairs Committee that March and never reached a full House vote. His 2023 effort, which included destination resort casinos and a state gaming commission, also went nowhere.

He’s had plenty of company. State Sen. Carol Alvarado, a Houston Democrat, has pushed to legalize casinos. Her 2025 proposal, SJR 16, called for destination resort casinos, sports betting, and a Texas Gaming Commission to oversee the industry.

Others have tried keeping the focus on sports betting. Republican Rep. Sam Harless of Spring filed HJR 134 in 2025 to put that question to voters, with Democratic Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa filing an identical Senate companion. Neither piece of legislation made it out of committee.