New York Senator files new igaming bill for third consecutive year

New York State Senator Joe Addabbo Jr has launched his latest attempt to legalize igaming in The Empire State in the form of SB 2614. 

Addabbo Jr’s latest bill comes just over a year after he introduced SB 8185, in what was another bid to bring online casino to New York – yet it failed to pass into legislation. 

The details of his most recent bill include a 30.5% tax rate on all GGR for licensed igaming operators.

Those eligible to apply for a license include brick-and-mortar casinos, online sports betting operators, Indian Tribes, and video lottery terminals (VLTs).

Each license will last for 10 years, and each licensee will be allowed just one skin. Land-based casinos, Tribes, and VLT facilities would pay a one-off licensing fee of $2m, while skins would hand over $10m.

While live dealer games will be permitted as part of Addabbo Jr’s proposal, the studio must be physically located in New York. 

However, any entity found to be currently offering games that require a license from the New York State Gaming Commission without the relevant certification will be deemed ineligible. 

Much like Addabbo Jr’s effort in 2024, this latest bill also includes measures to introduce ilottery to the state.  

SB 2614 includes a range of responsible gambling protocols, including a commitment to pledge $11m per year towards problem gambling treatment and education, alongside a requirement that all customers be notified once they have deposited $2,500 annually. 

Once a patron has reached that limit, licensees would be obligated to block all further wagering and ensure the account holder has “received disclosures from the operator concerning problem gambling resources.” 

All licensees will be required to submit an annual problem gaming plan approved by the New York State Gaming Commission. 

Addabbo Jr’s proposal also detailed plans to contribute $25m towards employee training, specific responsible gaming training, and education. 

SB 2614 will now be mulled over by the New York Senate’s Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee. 

Addabbo Jr believes regulated online casino would generate $1bn for the state.

Prior to submission of the bill, Addabbo Jr analyzed Governor Kathy Hochul’s new budget for 2025 and talked up the opportunity to legalize igaming as a means of funding her proposals. 

Addabbo Jr told Sports Betting Dime: “How is she going to pay for this? I have an idea. I have a couple of ideas. Every year I go into a budget with a little optimism, thinking to myself that if I was the governor, do I want to lose about a billion dollars every year to other states? To an illegal market? We used the same argument with online sports betting at the time, and you see the success we’ve had with that.” 

If approved, New York would become the eighth state with legal igaming, joining Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Michigan, West Virginia, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

New York has had regulated mobile sports betting since January 2022, although its burdensome laws mean operators pay a $25m license fee and are subject to a 51% tax rate on gross revenue to operate in the country’s fourth-most populous state.

In November, the mobile sportsbooks collectively set a new online revenue record of $231.6m – almost 54% higher than the same month the year prior.