Missouri: John Pappas to Meet with Lawmakers End of April
HB2502/2556 was heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee on 4/6. iDEA testified in favor of the bill alongside sports teams, casinos and reps for OSB companies. No votes were taken in committee. Senator Hoskins remained firm on questioning (mostly to sports teams), but was a little more measured than in previous hearing(s).
Due to Senator Hoskins’ availability this week, the Senate Committee vote is now tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, April 19.
Our team has been working the Senate on this bill and offered testimony at the hearing on 4/6. We are educating members on the need to keep tax rates low and provide incentives for operators to offer bonuses, etc.
Key focus is on Sen. Hoskins to ensure that his support for VLT legalization does not interfere with sports betting advancing to a vote on the Senate floor.
John Pappas will be traveling to the Capitol at the end of April to push for sports bill and also meet with lawmakers who are interested in pushing iGaming in the future.