Rhode Island making moves towards sports betting legislation

Approval of sports betting in the United States is on the rise.

While New York stalled on Thursday on the issue, the much smaller state of Rhode Island appears to be heading toward joining New Jersey as states that allow sports gambling.

The Rhode Island House approved a budget on Friday and set a framework for how legalized sports betting profits will be allocated.

The budget and sports-betting framework will still need to make it through more political steps. However, it certainly appears to be on the way to doing just that. That’s something that punters will be encouraged by.

Rhode Island, by territory size, is the smallest of the 50 states according to geographical area. Furthermore, only a little more than one million people live in Rhode Island. The scope of laws made in the state is not as widespread as other American states.

But according to in-state news source WPRI, the details pertaining to how sports betting “revenue” will be allocated are as follows: (1) the state of Rhode Island would receive the biggest chunk with 51%; (2) 32% would go to oddsmaker IGT; (3) the remaining 17% would go to casino owner Twin River.

Tiverton and Lincoln, as communities that will host casinos, won’t receive a percentage of the sports-betting revenue but will each receive $100,000 a year as a flat payment. Furthermore, they would have the extra benefit of seeing consumers from other parts of the state visit their towns.