Maryland’s iGaming Effort Comes to a Grinding Halt

The window of opportunity to legalize and regulate online casinos in Maryland closed on Monday, marking the end of a contentious legislative battle.

Despite the bill's progression from the House to the Senate last month, it became evident that there was scant support for the measure in the upper chamber.

Throughout its passage in the House, the debate surrounding online casinos was shrouded in controversy, with detractors vehemently opposing the efforts. Their fervent opposition, unlike anything witnessed in years, cast a shadow over the entire legislative process.

A surge of research inquiries reignited discussions regarding the potential impact of online casinos on their traditional brick-and-mortar counterparts.

Key findings and research perspectives:

• Findings from The Innovation Group suggested a substantial potential impact, estimating a decrease in retail bottom lines ranging from 8% to 10%.

• Conversely, a paper commissioned by iDEA Growth from Eilers and Krejcik proposed a more conservative estimate, placing the impact closer to 2%.

• While traditional anti-gambling factions seized upon The Innovation Group's results, so did local retail organizations and, notably, labor unions.

Groups such as the AFL-CIO and UNITE HERE made their presence felt in Annapolis, vehemently opposing the legislation.

Despite the formidable opposition, a version of House Delegate Vanessa E. Atterbeary's House Bill 1319 managed to navigate through the lower chamber. It overwhelmingly secured passage in March by a vote of 92-43, but that momentum wasn’t enough to keep the legislation moving forward.

Provisions and structure of the bill:

• The revised iteration of the bill proposed the issuance of up to 30 online casino licenses.

• A last-minute amendment introduced a ban on credit card deposits.

• Given that this expansion necessitated a modification to the state constitution, Marylanders would have their say through a referendum, mirroring the process for sports betting in 2020.

However, upon reaching the Senate chambers, the bill hit a roadblock, reminiscent of Senator Ron Watson's iGaming bill earlier in the session.

The absence of tax revenue from online casino expansion in the state budget unveiled at the session's outset signaled the bill's inevitable demise.

Reasons behind the bill’s failure:

• Lack of Senate support and competing legislative priorities.

• Strong union and retail opposition emphasizing job loss concerns.

• Omission of iGaming revenue from the fiscal plan, foreshadowing political disinterest.

Ultimately, the fate of the bill was sealed in the Budget and Taxation Committee, which convened multiple times on Monday without including HB 1339 on its official agenda.

For now, Maryland’s bid to expand into online casinos has reached its conclusion — with lawmakers and stakeholders expected to revisit the issue in future sessions.