State legislators are to hold hearings this week on a bill that could legalize Washington State sports betting after decades of it being banned.

House Bill 1975, sponsored by Majority Caucus Chair Eric Pettigrew (D) and seven others, calls for professional and college sports wagering to be legalized within tribal gaming facilities.

The bill, introduced last Friday, also calls for the legalization of online sports gaming within those same tribal facilities — which would represent a significant shift for the nation’s only state where any form of internet gambling is currently a Class C felony.

At least one regulator predicts the bill, if approved, could pave the way to wider-spread Washington State sports betting because the eventual tribal allowances would all be subject to negotiation with the state under federal gaming compact laws.

More at the Seattle Times