Once again, the state of Georgia has nixed sports betting legislation.
Monday was Crossover Day at the Georgia state capitol — the deadline for bills to be included in the current legislative session — and Senate Resolution 140, Senate Bill 172, and House Bill 380 did not advance to a vote.
This comes just days after the Georgia State Senate rejected Senate Bill 57, which would have permitted the state lottery to oversee legal sports and horse betting. The bill had advanced out of committee in February.
Sports betting legalization is now very unlikely to happen for Georgia in 2023 — and likely won’t be discussed again until 2024.
Since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) was overturned in 2018, Georgia had sports betting bills on the docket in 2021 or 2022, neither of which passed.
SB57’s chief sponsor, Sen. Billy Hickman, claims sports betting could generate $300 million to $400 million annually for the state, as well as create $1 billion in state economic impact and more than 8,500 jobs.
Gov. Brian Kemp would likely be game to sign a potential bill after changing his stance on sports betting in the runup to the 2022 gubernatorial election — he had previously opposed it.
