KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Television ads are heating up over Amendment 2, which if approved by voters in the state, would legalize sports betting.
Supporters tout revenue for education in the state, but opponents are trying to raise doubts. The Missouri Gaming Commission (MGC) would regulate sports betting if it becomes legal after the November 5 election.
“I wouldn’t want to make a definitive statement that there would be $0 going to teachers,” MGC Chairwoman Jan Zimmerman said in an interview with FOX4 Friday. “I see the ads. I see the ‘Vote Yes,’ and I see the ‘Vote No’ ads for both.”
Zimmerman, who lives here in the metro, says the MGC has done a lot of research when it comes to how much tax revenue will be generated if sports betting becomes legal.
“I just saw an ad [that says] $100 million for teachers and classrooms,” she continued. “I would never absolutely say unequivocally that that’s going to take place.”
The ad she’s talking about appears to have come from Winning for Missouri Education, who’s telling people to ‘Vote Yes’ on Amendment 2. It released a study that showed legalized sports betting could generate $105 million for public education in the state over the next five years.
The ‘Vote No’ side however, or Missourians Against the Deceptive Online Gambling Amendment, pointed to the fiscal note the Missouri State Auditor’s Office released on this initiative petition, saying an operator can deduct “up to 25% of the gross costs of promotional credits and free play. As a result, the Commission anticipates that operators will be permitted to deduct amounts to the extent the operator pays zero gaming taxes for sports wagering.”
“That is exactly why that 25% language is in there, Jonathan, and you’re perfect to look into this issue,” Winning for Missouri Education Spokesperson Jack Cardetti said in an interview with FOX4 Friday. “You’ll remember when Kansas passed sports betting, it did not generate that much revenue the first year because they didn’t cap those deductions.”
The Missouri Auditor’s Office fiscal note goes on to say Kansans wagered more than $194 million in sports bets in February of 2023, but the state only “received $1,134 in state tax revenue due to language permitting operators to deduct free play or promotional credits before assessing their state taxes.”
“Because the proposal allows for deductions against sports gaming revenues, they estimate unknown tax revenue ranging from $0 to $28.9 million annually. Local governments estimate unknown revenue,” the fiscal note summary says at the end of that 12 page note or report.
Zimmerman says the MGC doesn’t have a way of knowing whether sports betting would generate that $105 million number for public education in the state over the next five years.
