Maryland’s Senate Bill 4 which aims to legalize sports betting in the state passed through the upper chamber floor this week. It received the Budget and Taxation Committee’s unanimous approval.

Sen. Zucker’s bill moves ahead

The sports betting bill was introduced by Democratic Sen. Craig Zucker from Montgomery. The bill plans to allow six casinos and three horse racetracks in the state to provide sports betting services. It also aims to allow the NFL Redskins football stadium to provide sports betting opportunities to people and legalize mobile betting.

According to the bill, the collegiate, as well as the professional sporting events, will be bet upon in the states. Unlike some other states, it would allow betting on state universities as well. The bill was supported by four Republicans and nine Democrats on the Budget and Taxation Committee.

Sen. Zucker commented on the bill and said,

“This is something that we hear Marylanders want. As Maryland has been debating this, more than 16 states have already started to do sports betting.”

Note that Maryland’s neighbors like West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey have already started sports betting operations. New Jersey has turned out to be a very lucrative market.

Voters may decide the fate of the market in November

The US Supreme Court struck down PASPA 22 months ago and allowed all states in the US to provide sports betting offerings to their citizens. Earlier, only the state of Nevada held a monopoly in providing sports betting opportunities. Maryland neighbor New Jersey fought tooth and nail to bring athletic wagering to other states and is now enjoying the fruits of its labor.

The Old State has been relatively slow in taking legislative action on sports betting. The delay in their actions is mostly because they haven’t yet decided on the legal issues. The lawmakers have yet to find the best legal way to regulate the industry- via a General Assembly decision or with voter consent. Now, the lawmakers have decided that it would be crucial to get the citizen’s approval in this case.

Goucher College in Baltimore conducted a poll last month to find out the voter’s interest in sports betting. It suggests that 47% of people backed online sports betting but only 45% favored in-person sports betting. Lobbyists working for the industry may also start their campaigns soon to gather support for their cause.