By John Dempsey, WLS-AM news
(CHICAGO) Illinois lawmakers are considering a bill that would legalize and tax online Fantasy Sports betting.
An Illinois House Committee has approved a bill allowing websites such as FanDuel and DraftKings to legally operate, over the objections of the Illinois Gaming board, the gambling industry, and some lawmakers.
State Representative Scott Drury (D) Highwood, told “The Big John Howell Show” on WLS, that lawmakers seem to be rushing to allow the websites to legally operate, after a legal opinion from Attorney General Lisa Madigan that the sites constitute illegal gambling.
Drury told WLS, “They’ve been pushing this product as quickly as they could to get it popular. And now the argument is, ‘We’re so popular that you have to keep us legal.’ In committee yesterday I said, ‘Well, we have a lot of products that are popular that we don’t make legal’, and I’m not making light of it but there’s a huge heroin problem in the State of Illinois, but I don’t think that anyone’s rushing to legalize it because people are using it and because it’s become popular.”
Drury also says the bill does not have enough protections to ensure that minors will not gamble.
“We have gambling in Illinois. We have riverboat gambling, we have video gambling, we have the lottery, we have horse racing. All those bills were properly vetted. The big difference between those forms of gambling and this one is this can be done in the home. What protections are in place to stop a ten year old girl from playing FanDuel and becoming addicted to sports betting as a minor? What are the long term consequences of having a bunch of minors start engaging in legalized gambling?”
Supporters of the bill argued it is up to parents to monitor their children’s activities. Both FanDuel and DraftKings have filed a lawsuit against Madigan over her legal opinion, which they argue could put them out of business in Illinois.
The Illinois Casino Gaming Association issued a statement opposing the legislation, saying “The Illinois Casino Gaming Association is opposed to legislation that would exempt DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) “betting” without strict regulatory provisions that are the same rules, regulations and suitability standards that apply to Riverboat casinos with strict regulation and oversight by the Illinois Gaming Board.”
“Without comprehensive Internet regulation, there is no protection against criminal elements becoming involved in state sanctioned betting. This legislation should require DFS betting to be held to the same standards, consumer protections and regulations that all other gaming licensees’ betting products are currently required to meet.”
@ 2016 WLS-AM News
