SB 1059

Abstract

Sports betting; Virginia Sports Betting Department created; Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund; Sports Betting Operations Fund; penalties. Establishes the Virginia Sports Betting Department and authorizes it to regulate sports betting. Before administering a sports betting operation, an entity is required to apply for a one-year license and pay an application fee of $50,000 to operate a sports betting facility or $100,000 to operate a sports betting platform. An entity could apply for a license to operate only (i) at a racetrack or off-track betting facility in a locality that as of 2020 had approved such facilities at referendum or (ii) in a locality that votes to allow sports betting at referendum. The Department could issue up to five licenses to operate a sports betting facility; however, this limit would not apply to a facility at an existing racetrack or off-track betting facility. The Department could issue up to three licenses to operate a sports betting platform.Under the provisions of the bill, betting on college sports and youth sports is prohibited, and betting on professional sports is allowed. The bill prohibits betting by Department employees, participants in athletic events on which the bet is placed, and persons under age 18. The penalty for engaging in prohibited betting is a Class 1 misdemeanor.The bill directs the Department to establish a voluntary exclusion program, which would allow individuals to request that the Department exclude them from participating in sports betting.The bill imposes a 15 percent tax on revenue from sports betting facilities and sports betting platforms. The bill uses part of the tax revenue to fund the Department's operating costs, treatment of problem gambling, and contributions to the horsemen's purse account. Such initiatives are funded by an aggregate of five percent of the tax revenue. Fifty percent of tax revenue would accrue to the locality in which it was generated, and 45 percent would accrue to the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education Fund, which is used to provide monetary assistance to Virginia residents who are enrolled in a Virginia community college.