According to a newly published study, the movement to make it legal to bet on sports games in Georgia is still going strong, with many pieces of legislation receiving support in the state’s House and Senate.

One of the eight states in the United States that are now attempting to allow sports betting is Georgia.

Top 4 Sports Betting Sites For Players From Georgia in 2024

In 2018, the decision of the United States Supreme Court to strike down PASPA marked the beginning of the expansion of activity across the state.

According to data provided by the American Gaming Association, since then, 34 of the 50 states in the United States have passed legislation to legalize and start some kind of sports betting, while three states have passed legislation to legalize wagering but have not yet implemented it.

According to a report that was published not too long ago by the Associated Press, two measures that propose making sports betting legal are now gaining support in the state of Georgia.

On Tuesday of this week, a Senate committee discussed one of the proposals, which was Senate Bill 57. This bill is sponsored by Senator Billy Hickman, a Republican who represents Statesboro.

At the same time, Senate Bill 57 proposes adding wagering on horse racing as an additional option.

The topic of sports betting and gambling comes up every year in the #Georgia Legislature and every year it fails. Lawmakers are once again talking about it and hope this year is different. @FOX5Atlanta

Details: https://t.co/gOECGO5hBd pic.twitter.com/Hh8ptd2YX8

— Tyler Fingert (@TylerFingert) February 9, 2023

The bill proposes the establishment of three racetracks for horse racing, which would allow for betting on the activity across the state.

According to Brandon Beach, who serves as head of the Committee on Economic Development and Tourism in the Senate, a vote on the bill will most likely take place in the Senate the following week.

On the other hand, a different proposal also calls for the legalization of sports betting in the state of Georgia.

House Bill 380 was presented to the House on Monday. The current proposal, which has the support of Representative Marcus Wiedower, calls for the legalization of sports betting, but it makes no mention of horse racing.

The vote on this proposition in the House of Representatives is scheduled to take place later this week; however, it is still uncertain whether the initiative will gain more traction.

Challenges to Launching the Legal Sports Betting Market in Georgia 

There have been a number of bills introduced over the past few years in Georgia that would legalize gambling, but none of them have been successful in passing the legislature.

The regulation that is already in place in the state presents one of the most significant obstacles to the legality of the activity. In the end, legislators in the state are working toward the goal of including sports betting within the purview of the lottery.

Because it does not involve the complicated process of amending the constitution, this is the most straightforward approach of advancing the activity.

A constitutional amendment needs to receive approval from a majority of people in the state in addition to receiving a majority vote in both chambers of the legislature.

On the other hand, it’s likely to be harder to get an amendment to the Constitution passed that would make sports betting legal. This is because each chamber is split along partisan lines.

In addition, legislators have lately come to the conclusion that gambling on sports can be made legal as a component of the lottery, thereby simplifying the process of engaging in the activity.

It is very evident that legislators have not given up on the idea of legalizing sports betting in Georgia, as evidenced by the existence of not one but two separate initiatives that seek to regulate gambling in the state.

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