Is sports betting legal in Texas: House and Senate introduce bills to legalize mobile sports betting in the Lone Star State

Austin, Texas (KTRK) – According to the American Gaming Association, 50.4 million adults in our country — roughly 20% of the population, are expected to bet on Super Bowl on Sunday. A survey shows that nearly $16 billion will be gambled.

Zero cents will come from Texas.

Of the 33 states that offer legal, live sports gambling – Texas is not among them. However, this week Sen. Lewis Colkhorst (R-Brenham) introduced SB715 and SJR 39, and Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano) introduced HB 1942 and HJR 102 to legalize and regulate mobile sports betting in the Lone Star State.

SEE ALSO: Sports betting advocates return to Capitol with narrower draft, New Republican author

The legislation is supported by the Texas Sports Betting Alliance – which consists of professional sports franchises in Texas, including the Astros, Rockets, Texans, Dynamo and Dash.

“There is very strong public support for online and in-person sports betting in Texas,” political expert Mark Jones told ABC13 on Tuesday. “More than two-thirds of Texans support it, and that’s a bipartisan consensus.”

Lt. Dan Patrick, a longtime opponent of legal gambling, holds the keys to whether or not this latest piece of legislation will pass, says Jones, a Baker Institute Fellow in Political Science at Rice University.

SEE ALSO: University of Houston conducts survey to see if Texans support major changes to state gambling laws

“The Texas House supports online casino and gambling, and Governor Greg Abbott supports online casino and gambling – it’s only the Senate, where Dan Patrick runs the show, that now blocks it,” Jones explained.

Colkhorst, the author of SB 715, is a close ally of Patrick, according to Jones.

“She held several important notes for the Lieutenant Governor in the Senate, including one in which she received a lot of criticism for doing so,” Jones said of Colkhorst. “So the fact that she’s introducing this law is a sign that at least the Lieutenant Governor hasn’t completely closed the door on the idea of ​​online sports betting. At the end of the day, if Patrick says he’s in favor of neutrality toward casino, gambling or online gambling, we’ll see it pass.”

If sports betting legislation clears both the House and Senate and then receives the go-ahead from Abbott, Texas voters will see it on the ballot as a constitutional amendment on November 7, 2023.

For more sports news, follow Adam Winkler FacebookAnd Twitter And Instagram.