Washington DC council proposes amendments to sports betting bill

Amendments have been proposed to the sports betting bill passed by the Washington D.C. council of the district of Columbia last month in which private businesses would be able to apply for licenses to operate sports betting facilities. The D.C. Lottery would oversee a single-operator system of online betting within city limits.

The amendments, titled “Sports Wagering Lottery Clarification Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2019”, were submitted late last week by Council member Kenyan McDuffie for the purpose of clarifying the amount of Class A and Class B licenses.

The four sports venue licenses would double from $250,000 to $500,000 and licensing venues outside of the two-block exclusivity zones of those venues would pay $100,000.

50 percent of taxes collected would fund the Birth-to-Three for All and remainder the Commission on the Arts and Humanities.

The council bill still needs to be signed off by the mayor followed by a 30-day review period by Congress.