“State-sponsored gambling, which tends to be predatory in nature, will lead to more addictions, more bankruptcies, more broken homes, and the pastors I represent across Georgia will be dealing with much of those consequences,” he said at a recent committee hearing.
This year’s series of bills fall into two categories: those introduced by lawmakers who say gambling in Georgia can only be expanded through a constitutional amendment, and those backed by lawmakers who say sports betting should be treated as a lottery game should be considered and can be legalized without a referendum. Changing the state constitution is difficult because it requires the support of two-thirds of each chamber and then a majority of Georgia voters to pass.
Two bills focus solely on sports betting, and a third would legalize both sports betting and horse racing. All are sponsored by Republican lawmakers and have bipartisan support. A fourth bill, a resolution by Macon’s Democratic House Speaker James Beverly, would legalize sports betting, horse racing and casinos. Only Democrats are co-signatories to Beverly’s bill.
For nearly a decade before sports betting entered the picture, some lawmakers were urging their peers to support the legalization of casinos and horse racing.
“It’s all about competing lobbyists,” said Neill Herring, a longtime environmental lobbyist in Georgia. “There is a group of sports bettors who only seem interested in their project. There is another group of horses (races). And another group of casino people. And each group seems to look at each other with disdain and want to be the one to pass the bill first.”
Gov. Brian Kemp has announced he will work with Legislative leaders on a measure this year to allow sports betting – something he had previously opposed. as Lt. gov. Burt Jones was a state senator, he sponsored legislation to make sports betting legal. And House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, was open to the idea of sports betting.
Proponents have said sports betting could bring in anywhere from $30 million to $100 million in revenue for the state each year. Critics consider such numbers to be exaggerated.
Senate Bill 57, sponsored by State Senator Billy Hickman, a Statesboro Republican who breeds and races horses in other states, would legalize online sports betting and horse racing without amending the constitution. The Senate Economic Development and Tourism Committee approved Hickman’s bill last week.
“My bill treats all sports equally,” he said. “Horse racing is a sport – just like the Braves, just like the Falcons, just like the Masters. But the difference in our bill is that it creates jobs for rural Georgia. Our economic impact study shows they will create about 8,500 jobs and the economic impact will be $1 billion per year.”
Hickman cites a recent Georgia Southern University study commissioned by the senator. Hickman also relies on a memo by former Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold Melton that sports betting should be considered an extension of the Georgia Lottery, with the money being used for educational purposes and therefore requiring no constitutional amendment.
When Georgians amended the constitution to legalize the lottery in 1992, the referendum determined that funds for the HOPE Scholarship and the Pre-K.
Analysts in the Capitol were divided on whether the state constitution allows sports betting. In 2019, Legislative Counsel Director Rick Ruskell recommended passage of a constitutional amendment to legalize sports betting, citing ambiguities in the state’s constitutional definitions.
Former US Rep. John Barrow filed a statement with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in response to Melton’s memo, saying the former Chief Justice’s reasoning was flawed.
Photo credit: [email protected]
Photo credit: [email protected]
Melton’s memo was requested by the Metro Atlanta Chamber, which supports sports betting legislation. The chamber is part of a coalition of groups, including Atlanta’s professional sports franchises, supporting House Bill 380 sponsored by Republican Rep. Marcus Wiedower of Watkinsville. This bill also does not provide for any constitutional changes, but would only legalize sports betting. The House Higher Education Committee approved Wiedower’s bill on Monday.
“This is the only clean bill that will legalize safe sports betting in Georgia while generating funds for education – resulting in a clear win-win situation for Georgian residents and students,” Wiedower said.
Other lawmakers say a constitutional amendment is needed not only to allow sports betting in the state, but to allow the state to spend money on things other than HOPE and Pre-K.
Senate Regulated Industries Chairman Bill Cowsert, an Athens Republican and attorney, said the only legal way to make sports betting legal in Georgia is through constitutional amendment.
He sponsors Senate Resolution 140 and Senate Bill 172, which would require voters to amend the Constitution to allow sports betting and create a Gambling Commission to regulate sports betting, respectively. Its committee approved SR 140 last week and is expected to vote on SB 172 sometime this week.
“I think it’s disingenuous to call sports betting a lottery game now, to bypass the people, to deny the people a say,” he said. “I don’t think that as legislators we should circumvent the will of the people.”
Cowsert’s resolution calls for spending of sports betting revenue on need-based scholarships, poverty alleviation, promoting Georgia as a sports venue, educational innovation and gambling services.
Beverly said he wants to funnel the money to places other than HOPE and pre-K. His legislation, House Resolution 210, would provide money for a variety of state budget purposes, such as tourism, economic development, and cultural and performing arts. His bill is unlikely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled House.
Photo credit: Miguel Martinez for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Photo credit: Miguel Martinez for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“There are so many different ways that this money can be allocated,” Beverly said. “Education is part of it, but if we think about it broadly, what are the things in Georgia that we need to invest in now?”
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