An online casino gaming bill was recently filed by Representative Robert Davis, who also filed similar legislation during the last session to usher in an era of iGaming in the Cowboy State.
iGaming Conversation
As the new legislative sessions convene, there has been more conversation surrounding online casino gaming than ever before. Mobile sports betting caught fire relatively quickly after lawmakers began to consider the additional revenue it could render.
However, online casino gambling has proven to be a more difficult proposition for legislators to adopt despite it being far more lucrative than mobile sports betting. Concerns ranging from the cannibalization of retail casinos’ revenues to societal ills vis-à-vis gambling addiction have been a major cause for pause throughout state legislatures.
And although the 2025 legislative session just began, there has been more discussion than ever among state politicians, and Wyoming is no different. Representative Robert Davis has filed House Bill 162, which would legalize iGaming, and he has based his support on a study by the Spectrum Gaming Group. Davis’s bill would give regulatory authority over iGaming to the Wyoming Gaming Commission.
Safe Bet or a Risky Play?
Davis noted the lack of information on iGaming compared to sports betting could turn people off, but that could be fixed. “There will be an educational component,” Davis said. “Sports wagering has a lot more exposure than iGaming. Everyone is talking about sports wagering: ‘Did you see the game? Did you get in on the action?’”
The bill would create a minimum of five licenses to be awarded initially, costing $100,000 over a five-year period, with renewals set at $50,000. The tax rate would be 16 percent, and the first $300,000 in revenue would be earmarked for problem gambling resources.
Cannibalization of retail casinos has been a major hurdle for lawmakers in other states to overcome, but Wyoming has no commercial casinos that pay tax to the state, only a handful of tribal gaming facilities. “The iGaming portion sounds good. It doesn’t support any cannibalization, and it looks to be relatively easily implemented based on the things the state of Wyoming currently has going for it,” said Davis.
Study Shows Online Casinos a Good Fit
Spectrum Gaming Group estimates Wyoming could derive $40 million in annual taxes from online casino platforms. Blueprints from the seven states currently engaged in iGaming would be a valuable resource in assisting the Wyoming Gaming Commission’s efforts to craft rules and ultimately launch online casino gambling.
“Wyoming appears to be in an enviable position to expand its gaming operations to include internet gaming should it decide to proceed with this endeavor,” Spectrum’s report reads.
Penn Entertainment, owner of ESPN Bet, has a license in Wyoming but has yet to launch. However, the Pennsylvania-based gaming company is working on a standalone iGaming platform that would be useful in the states in which they are currently active as well as in Wyoming if iGaming legislation is passed.
Truist analyst Barry Jonas commented, “We think standalone iGaming could be an underappreciated opportunity, given Penn’s extensive land-based portfolio. We continue to see state tax revisions as the largest threat to interactive gaming. Still, despite the real prospect of more tax increase bills next year, management teams thought the prospect for the bills succeeding was low.”
