Ameristar On the Sports Betting Band Wagon
Ameristar Casino (ASCA: 15.09 0.00%) in Council Bluffs is just one of 17 casinos that hope to bring sports wagering out of the underground and into the gambling realm of casinos.
“We would definitely be interested in that, as any gaming company in the state would be,” Jane Bell, the casino’s director of government relations said.
Betting on professional sports is a part of several gambling expansion bills being considered by Iowa lawmakers as a way to close budget gap since sports wagering would not only boost revenue for Iowa casinos, but also could be taxed, benefiting state coffers.
The betting bill was approved unanimously earlier this month by an Iowa Senate subcommittee and was OK’d by the full Senate State Government Committee.
However Congress would need to lift the 1992 federal ban on sports betting before anyone can benefit. Delaware, Montana, Nevada and Oregon were grandfathered in as their laws were in effect before the ban.
That doesn’t stop gaming companies like Ameristar from being excited about the future, Bell added “It would add another dimension, a little excitement and a little buzz.”
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