One of the first states to legalize sports betting was Mississippi. In August 2018, three months after the US Supreme Court struck down the federal legislation that had restricted single-game gambling to Nevada, the state's casinos started accepting bets on professional and collegiate sports.
Mississippi is now among the few states that prohibit online wagering, nearly eight years after retail sports betting went live. By requiring bettors to physically visit a business in order to place a wager, Mississippi's sports betting law aims to safeguard the state's riverboats.
The in-person betting rule, according to critics, has hindered revenue and resulted in lower tax revenue from sports betting. Additionally, there are allegations that offshore, unregulated sportsbooks with no consumer protections are benefiting from the retail sportsbook-only rule.
Rep. Casey Eure (R-Harrison) of Mississippi is spearheading legislation to allow sports betting online for the fourth consecutive year. Eure, the chair of the House Gaming Committee, has been committed to bringing more Mississippi sportsbooks online.
Protection of Casinos
Eure wants to include a clause that would lessen opposition in order to hedge his bet on Mississippi mobile sports betting during the 2026 legislative session.
Eure's House Bill 4074 would protect the state's 25 commercial gaming facilities by offering them a tax cut, as many lawmakers believe that in-person sports betting benefits casinos because some bettors choose to play a table game, play a slot machine, or buy food or drinks while visiting the casino.
With a 100-11 vote last week, the Mississippi House of Representatives approved HB4074, which will lower the effective tax rate on each casino's gross gaming revenue from 8% to 6% starting on July 1, 2026. In-person sports betting revenue would have its state tax rate reduced from 18.5% to only 3.5%.
According to Eure, the retail casino tax drop is expected to result in yearly casino revenue savings of $48 million. Smaller casinos who had previously rejected mobile sports betting due to worries that they wouldn't be able to secure one of the well-known partnerships like DraftKings and FanDuel would benefit from that.
Each casino in Mississippi could only collaborate with one online sportsbook under HB4074.
Estimated Revenue
A 22% state tax on revenue from mobile sportsbooks is proposed in Eure's Mississippi sports betting proposal.
"At 22%, mobile sports betting is projected to bring in $100 million a year [for the state],” Eure told the House before last week’s vote.
He argues that the casinos' retail tax savings would enable them to maintain their competitiveness with mobile sportsbooks, give employees raises, and reinvest in their establishments. However, the proposal would give the casinos the freedom to use the tax savings however they see fit.
The Mississippi Senate has received HB4074 and is awaiting committee assignment.
