Senate Bill 524 focuses on legalising and regulating online gambling operations
across the state, whilst also seeking to legalise daily fantasy sports and
online lottery. The four supporters and co-sponsors of the bill are Senate
Minority Leader Jay Costa, Senator Vincent Hughes, Senator Judy Schwank and
Senator Wayne Fontana.
Bill 524 is the third piece of internet gambling legislation to have been put
forward in Pennsylvania, following SB 477 and HB 392.
While the latest bill includes some of the same language and measures as its predecessors, it does set out a number of reforms that differ to the other bills.
Bill 524 calls for the restoration of the local tax imposed on host and surrounding communities, as well as mobile tablet gaming at select airports in the state and fixing the slots tax imposed on Category 3 casinos.
However, the latest bill would impose a 25% tax on online gambling activities, which is considerably higher than the 14% proposed in HB 392.
Bill 524 also includes a proposal to set the cost of an online gambling licence of approximately US$ 10 million, higher than the US$ 8 million set out in the other bill, as well as a higher rate for industry vendors.
Pennsylvania’s House Gaming Oversight Committee is due to consider gambling expansion plans in the state at its next hearing on March 28.
