Having blown past their soft deadline of July 1, Pennsylvania’s Republican-controlled state legislature is still trying to iron out a budget agreement with newly-elected Democratic Governor Tom Wolf. And so far, that has not included talk of online gambling expansion. Wolf is intent on raising revenue by overhauling the state’s income tax code and creating new taxes on, among other things, natural gas production. On the other hand, the legislature would like to raise the necessary revenue without raising taxes. Republicans are of the opinion this can be accomplished by reforming existing revenue channels. One of the proposals put forth…

English Premier League football teams Leicester City, Norwich City and West Bromwich Albion have all secured partnerships with gambling companies. Leicester has agreed a deal with Betfair that will see the online operator become the club’s official betting partner. Although the terms of the deal were not disclosed, it has been confirmed that the partnership will commence ahead of the 2015-16 season, which kicks off this weekend. Meanwhile, West Brom has signed a one-year partnership with NetBet that will run for the duration of the 2015-16 season. Under the agreement, NetBet will serve as the club’s betting partner and benefit…

Italian police said on Wednesday they had seized assets worth 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) and issued 41 arrest warrants in raids on gambling companies in Italy and abroad run by the ‘Ndrangheta mafia organization. Police believe the firms, including six that were operating out of Malta, were used to launder vast sums of illicit cash. Italy’s mafia groups, including the ‘Ndrangheta from the southern region of Calabria, the Camorra from Naples and Sicily’s Cosa Nostra, have strengthened their grip on southern Italy’s economy and spread to the richer north during a three-year economic slump. Among the targets of Wednesday’s…

Betting and gaming site NetBet has restarted its activities in Romania after a 12-month break following its advance payment of all penalty, licensing and authorisation taxes and guarantees to the Romanian Government. The group did not reveal the amount it paid in retroactive taxes but as its exposure to Romania was not major it is not thought to be a high amount. It has received a temporary licence from Romania’s Supervising Committee of the National Gambling Office that will run until 31 December 2015, during which time NetBet will prepare its application for a 10-year licence. The issue of retrospective…

While the casino world focuses on fighting an IRS plan to track slot jackpots starting at $600, a little-noticed companion proposal would benefit gamblers, a tax expert says. The proposed change in Internal Revenue Service procedure would establish a “playing session” concept, which could allow players to report less gambling income on their tax return than what is listed on a W2-G the casino issues to jackpot winners and the IRS. “The IRS is actually doing something that’s taxpayer-friendly with the session method,” says Marissa Chien, co-author of “Tax Help for Gamblers” (Huntington Press) and president of Advantage Tax Plus…

With proposals to expand casino gambling to other parts of New Jersey gaining momentum, Atlantic City is faced with an existential choice: fight to the end to try to keep it from happening, or accept it as inevitable and extract the most concessions it can from new, in-state competitors. It’s a question the city and its political and business supporters need to answer soon. Two bills that would ask voters whether to amend the state constitution and expand gambling beyond Atlantic City have been proposed, and lawmakers are touting casino projects in the Bergen County Meadowlands, Jersey City, Newark and…