Whilst state governments are pushing for a legal sports betting industry nationwide, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) introduced a bill to regulate national operations. Sports betting sector is federally banned in the United States, as the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) only allows operations in Oregon, Delaware, Montana and Nevada.

Pallone’s bill was supported by tribal operators, which will be included as potential bidders during the licensing process, as a source revealed to Legal Sports Report. The federal legislation would not interfere with the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) nor affect the current gaming agreements between the administrations and the tribal operators.

“His draft bill goes a long way toward what tribes could support,” stated an anonymous representative of tribal casino operators to the local news outlet. Meanwhile, NIGA Chairman Ernie Stevens critisised several actions by sports betting lobbying group and assured the association would monitor the legal process. “As one of the key stakeholders in these discussions we want to ensure that, if legalised, our members have the opportunity to offer this activity as part of their overall entertainment package and as an additional source of revenue for tribal government gaming to promote tribal economic development, tribal self-sufficiency and strong tribal government,” he stated.

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