Ohio Lawmakers Pen Letter Proposing Online Casino And Lottery Legalization

Three Republican members of the Ohio House of Representatives have written a letter recommending that the state take further steps to legalize online gambling. The letter, included in a report released Friday by the Study Commission on the Future of Gaming in Ohio, also advocated for lifting the existing ban on college athlete prop betting.

The GOP lawmakers, Jay Edwards, Cindy Abrams, and Jeff LaRe, proposed the inclusion of casino games and lottery games on mobile phones, arguing that this would be of “net benefit” to the state and describing it as having “tremendous potential.”

“Looking at other states who have implemented either or both iLottery and iGaming, we see significant increases to tax revenues generated with greater participation but also that in-person sales continued to increase,” the representatives wrote.

Only seven states have legalized online casino gaming, and while numerous other states have considered it, Ohio was not believed to be among the frontrunners prior to this letter. Online lottery has been legalized in 14 U.S. jurisdictions.

Sports betting specifics

Sports betting was first launched in the Buckeye State in 2023, but additional regulation has been instated since then. In February of this year, the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) placed a ban on college player prop betting amid concerns over the rise in athlete harassment cases, with a recent NCAA campaign advocating a nationwide ban. Ohio is one of 13 states that currently have a college player props ban in place.

In addition, Ohio lawmakers raised taxes on sports betting operators from 10% to 20%.

The three Republicans also opposed both of these measures in the letter, labeling the tax increase “premature.”  

“Reports of harassment and potential threats are unacceptable at any stage of athletics. Such acts should be investigated and prosecuted accordingly. But the response from the OCCC to simply ban prop-betting on individual collegiate athletes looks to solve the problem without addressing the issue,” the letter said. “We recommend that the OCCC’s policy be rescinded and prop betting on college athletes be restored.”

The debate on college athlete props betting has been prominent recently. In March, the NCAA started a campaign to introduce a national ban. The campaign, initiated by the NCAA president Charlie Baker, claims that the ban would reduce the number of harassment cases against athletes. 

“Sports betting issues are on the rise across the country, with prop bets continuing to threaten the integrity and competition and leading to harassment of student-athletes and professional athletes,” said Baker in a March statement. “The NCAA has been working with states to deal with these threats, and many are responding by banning college prop bets.”

However, last week, the Wyoming Gaming Commission chose to table the issue, with Operations Manager Michael Steinberg expressing doubts about the ban’s effectiveness in reducing athlete harassment.