New Illinois online gambling bill set for hearings

The legalisation of several forms of online gambling is set to be debated by the Illinois legislature after proposals were circulated by bill sponsor Senator John Cullerton on Tuesday.

According to reports Cullerton has been sounding out stakeholders with a view to give the bill its first committee hearing later this week. Online gambling proposals had been part of Illinois’ broader gambling expansion bill until they were removed last month.

The new standalone bill looks set to allow almost all forms of online gambling apart from sports betting, while charging operators a US$20m licence fee. Taxes on gaming revenue would range between 7.5% and 20%, according to a Chicago Business article.

As Cullerton has previously proposed, a new Division of Internet Gaming would be formed with the Illinois Lottery which would regulate the market. The state’s existing licensees would then apply for licences to run their own gaming platforms.

The bill had initially included a measure to block operators which accepted bets from US players in the last 10 years, although this was subsequently changed to only affect those convicted of doing so. Last year Cullerton attempted to pass a similar bill, however he took it off the state’s Executive Committee agenda before the procedural deadline after the casinos lobbied for the right to use their own platforms rather than the lottery’s.