The New York Gaming Commission has already taken some steps leading towards legalizing land-based sports betting activities back in January 2019. The news came after a meeting held on the 28th of January when the commission approved certain regulations which will actually allow four casinos in the state to obtain licenses required to offer sports betting activities within their land-based gambling facilities.
The regulations approved back in January cover all sorts of reporting and technical requirements. One of the rules states that all kinds of sports betting activities must be offered in land-based, dedicated venue lounges that must be at least five hundred square feet. Another regulation states that any kind of online or mobile sports betting activities is permitted within these dedicated lounges.
The Latest Non-Mobile Sports Betting Regulations and Rules
All individuals who are involved in the sportsbook operation must be registered and licensed by the New York Gaming Commission under the state’s Racing, Wagering and Breeding Law. The regulations also stated that the gambling operators themselves are able to apply for licensing certifications which will last as long as their land-based casino license lasts.
The Commission also allows casinos and gambling facilities to partner with other operators and vendors to assist them with the operating of their sports betting activities. This was already done by the state’s biggest commercial venues of this kind including Empire Resorts’ Resorts World Catskills which has partnered with bet365, Paddy Power Betfair’s Duel with prominent Tioga Downs, DraftKinds has signed a partnership deal with del Lago Resort & Casino while Rivers Casino & Resort Schenectady has partnered with Rush Street.
As revealed by the latest sports betting regulations, only players aged twenty-one and over are able to wager real money on sports events whose results are fully verified. In other words, players are allowed to place wager only on events whose results are not affected by wagers placed. This means that all sports betting activities must be carefully conducted in compliance with the Commission’s applicable regulations, rules, and laws.
It should be noted that wagering is not permitted on any youth or amateur sports event, on any collegiate sports events and on horse racing. These regulations will most likely be applicable to all land-based venues including the state’s popular tribal casinos that can offer the same service and products as permitted to commercial venues.
Rules Taking Effect by the 26th of June
Several months have passed after the regulations were approved and several more days has to pass before the rules take effect. In fact, rules can take effect only when they appear in the State Register and this is set to happen on the 26th of June. Since the regulations are still in their construction phase, the very first sportsbooks may start operating in August. This will make New York the fourteenth state to legalize some sports betting variants.
Currently, state lawmakers are working hard to potentially revise some of the regulations specifically regulations which prohibit all mobile and online sports betting activities. However, this must be approved several days from now as the state Legislature season ends by the 19th of June. Hence, these changes are not likely to happen this year especially since online gambling and betting regulations to be examined and eventually approved require an amendment to the constitution of the state which is a long process taking two to three years.
