Hawaii lawmakers considered multiple regulated gambling proposals this year, but although they failed to pass any of them, there is progress being made, and the efforts appear likely to continue in years to come. A Hawaiian bill to legalize online sports betting died in committee after state lawmakers failed to reach a consensus on its final details, while alternative proposals, including retail casinos and a state-operated sweepstakes site, petered out even earlier.
While disappointed by the immediate result, supporters of House Bill 1308 have said the outcome was not entirely fruitless.
One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Daniel Holt, told Hawaii News Now that the setback means lawmakers need to try harder next year.
We put our best effort forward, we got it very far this year, this deep into conference, but it seems as if we have not come to agreement on details: the tax amount who would operate, would house the operation of the sports betting and give out the license and licensing fees.
It is what it is, and we just got to work harder next year, try to answer the questions that the rest of the members and the public has and see if we can capture this tax revenue that we much need for our state.
Progress over perfection
Despite the bill’s untimely death, backers applauded the bill’s initial progress and the creation of a working group to study the impacts of legal gambling.
Cliff Laboy, who lobbies on behalf of T. George Paris and the Hawaii Ironworkers Stabilization Fund, told HNN legalization has never been closer.
There’s never been a bill that went this far in gaming. Get the task force, go out there, find out, study, do your due diligence, come back, go back to the table and figure out which way you want to go. But Hawaii needs something like this. There’s no other way… unless the legislators can come to the general public with a plan on how we’re gonna bring new money into the state.
In addition to the sports betting bill, Hawaii’s lawmakers proposed several pieces of gambling legislation this session, including a state-operated sweepstakes casino.
However, aside from the sports betting bill, the most promising proposal was for two tourist-focused retail casinos on Oahu. Unfortunately, following a public consultation, legislators returned that bill to committee, and it was later deferred.
While the stalled progress may seem like bad news, it’s more progress than previous proposals have made.
Historically, gambling expansion rarely succeeds on the first try. So, despite the premature death of Hawaii’s latest legislative efforts, it appears the state is inching toward gambling legalization.
Next year, lawmakers will likely try again, so we can assume Hawaiian casinos and lottery will also get more attention.
Critics argue online betting could lead to policy disaster
However, the parties opposed to legalization believe the risks outweigh the potential benefits, and those concerns are unlikely to evaporate.
Speaking to HNN, Les Bernal, the national director for Hawaii’s Stop Predatory Gambling advocacy group, called online gambling a “public policy disaster.”
If you bring in online gambling, you’re opening a Las Vegas casino in every home, every bedroom, every dorm room, every office that has an internet connection in your state. This is the 5th state in America this year that said no to expanding online gambling because they’ve seen happen to other states and it’s been a public policy disaster.
Further, State Rep. and minority leader Lauren Matsumoto said lawmakers must proceed cautiously to avoid opening Pandora’s Box. However, the established working group should help calm political nerves and advance the discussion.
It’s more prudent for us to do the resolution and the study first than it is to just pass the bill. Once you have that toehold, that leads to the foothold that could lead to casinos here in Hawaii so I think it’s important for us to tread cautiously because once you open that up so there’s no taking it back.
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