Iowa has been taking in revenue from sports betting since August. In that first month, the state saw a handle (that’s the total money bet) of $8.58 million—$4.91 million retail and $3.67 million online. In November, the statewide handle grew to seven times that amount, $59.34 million—$25.68 million retail and $33.67 million online.
Over those four months, the casinos or bookies or whoever is running the bets took a 10.7% cut, $16.38 million. The state’s cut is a mere 0.72% of the total handle, $1.10 million. But that’s $1.10 million more in revenue from sports gambling than South Dakota took in. Assume that betting will continue to grow as casinos find ways to promote the new gaming product, and we can guesstimate that Iowa’s first yearly tax take from sports betting could reach five million dollars, enough to pay for at least three anti-drug campaigns (maybe six if you don’t pay Minneapolis premium prices).
The Deadwood Gaming Association tried last year to get the Legislature to put sports gambling for their fair town on the 2020 ballot, won a Senate vote, but failed to get a House vote. The Deadwood gamers considered running a Deadwood sports-betting amendment as an initiative petition but never launched that effort. They say they’ll try again with this year’s Legislature. The LRC estimated that sports betting in Deadwood alone would generate $185K in new annual tax revenue for the state and locals involved. (The Iowa casino with the biggest sports betting handle so far, Prairie Meadows just outside of Des Moines, has in the last four months generated $325K in state tax from its sports gambling.)
Iowa is the only state bordering South Dakota that has legalized and launched sports betting; however, Montana has enacted legislation to allow sports betting, has published rules, and is taking license applications.
The Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission has approved bets on college and professional football, basketball, hockey, and baseball; soccer here and abroad; boxing and cage fighting; Canadian football, arena football, and XFL; NASCAR, Indy Car, and Formula 1 racing; Olympic team events; and other athletic contests. Iowa allows betting on individual awards like MVP and Heisman, player stats, and golf placings and head-to-head matchups. The IRGC does not allow “negative outcome propositions”—you can’t bet on injuries, arrests, penalties, or individual athlete screw-ups—or bets on minor-league or youth sports
Here’s one time I’m glad to see women’s sports ignored.
Way off topic with humblest apologies, Canadian band Rush drummer Neil Peart passes at 67.
Rush was a very underrated band. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnxkfLe4G74
RIP