Wyoming may eventually get legal online casinos, but it doesn’t look like 2025 will be the year. Rep. Robert Davis championed the idea for the second year running, but his bill won’t emerge from the Committee on Travel, Recreation, Wildlife & Natural Resources unless members have a sudden change of heart.
The Committee heard the bill on January 30 but failed to act upon it before the end of the session. During the following session on Monday, February 3, Rep. Marilyn Connolly moved to resume deliberations on iGaming. However, none of her fellow Committee members were willing to second the motion. Davis’s bill was left by the wayside as the Committee proceeded to other matters, like revisions to the health insurance policy for volunteer first responders.
The strongest objections to Davis’s proposal came, somewhat inevitably, from the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes. Although it wouldn’t cut them out from iGaming entirely, the bill would have effectively restricted them to conducting it within the borders of their reservations. The text explicitly rejected the interpretation of federal tribal gaming law currently in use in Florida, that bets “take place” wherever the gaming servers are. That interpretation would have allowed the tribes to negotiate a compact to offer iGaming state-wide.
Nor would Davis’s bill have allowed the tribes to pursue commercial licenses. Its terms for licensure would require them to launch commercial online casino operations in three other states first before applying.
Problem gambling activist groups also raised concerns about the bill. However, while other states have managed to pass iGaming expansion bills over objections from gambling opponents, no state with tribal gaming has done so without giving the tribes a seat at the table.
Wyoming made progress (of a sort) in 2025
Although Rep. Davis’s 2025 effort was short-lived, it did make it somewhat farther than last year’s.
In 2024, David said he felt that his bill had a 50/50 shot to pass if it made it to the floor. However, it didn’t even make it as far as a committee referral. The legislature killed it on the starting line, with 36 of 62 House Representatives voting against its introduction.
This year, Davis had more concrete justification to provide to the legislature for his bill, with revenue projections from Spectrum Gaming Group.
However, the referral of the bill to the Travel Committee doesn’t necessarily mean greater support from other Representatives. Wyoming’s legislative sessions follow a two-year cycle, with Budget Sessions in even-numbered years and longer General Sessions in odd-numbered years.
During the Budget Sessions, an introductory vote must result in a two-thirds majority for a bill to receive a committee assignment for further consideration. No such vote is required during the General Sessions.
Next year will be a Budget Session again. Assuming Rep. Davis resumes his effort in 2026, the results of the introductory vote will be the surest indicator of whether any actual progress is being made on the topic.
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