It was a strange and sudden move for legislation that hasn’t budged for a month, but it will keep the possibility of legalizing mobile sports wagering this year alive in Mississippi for the time being. Mobile sports betting legislation has lurched forward in the Mississippi legislature after weeks of motionlessness and without any mobile sports betting-related provisions. The committee, however, used an amendment to remove all of the mobile sports betting components from H.B.
"There are a lot of issues that we need to consider from the perspective of the industry and also from the perspective of the consumer that we will do if we get to the point where we might be able to get something done this year," Sen. Blount said during a meeting Tuesday morning."But in the meantime, we certainly don't want to stop people from listening to each other and working.
The ties to casinos reflect concerns that have been heard along the way in Mississippi about the effect that statewide mobile wagering could have on brick-and-mortar operators.Time will tell how much further H.B. 774 goes, but there is only so much time available for lawmakers to hammer out a new proposal and get it passed by their peers.
Yet the 2024 legislative session has not produced a lot of wins for sportsbook and iGaming operators, at least not thus far.