If select state legislators have their way, Indiana could have online casino gaming and online poker by September 1st, 2023.
HB 1536 is a new bill proposed by Rep Ethan Manning (R-Logansport) that would allow domestic casinos and racetracks to run three online casino skins and be taxed at 20%. It would also allow the state of Indiana to join a multi-state online compact for online poker play. So far, Indiana only allows online sports betting, which has been in place since 2019.
Three Strikes Is Not An Out In Indiana
This new proposed legislation is the third time an iGaming bill has been presented to the state legislation in Indiana. Last year a similar bill was proposed by Rep. Doug Gutwein with an 18% tax rate and was one of two similar iGaming bills submitted.
State officials have voiced concerns about raising the tax rate too high as neighboring state Michigan currently taxes their online casinos at 28%. Some state officials believe that lowering the tax rate could attract new ventures.
The previous two submitted bills did not make it out of the committee. This year HB 1536 has until February 27th to advance to the state senate.
USA Legal Online Casinos And Poker Sites
Despite the lack of legislation, there are still legal online gambling options in Indiana from legitimate sites outside the United States. Offshore gambling sites operate legally through the lack of US gambling laws, and Indiana residents can play online casinos, sports betting sites, and poker with offshore sites.
While offshore gambling is excellent in many ways, it does not provide state revenue as domestic online casinos could. While IN-state winners are taxed on their winnings, the sites fall out of the jurisdiction and cannot be taxed.
What’s Next For Indiana Gambling Laws?
The following steps for HB 1536 are to enter the state senate, which will have to pass by vote to be entered into law. The two previous iGaming bills did not enter the state senate and therefore were deemed dead in the committee stage.
US Gambling laws give states the jurisdiction to determine what online options gambling entities can access and the taxes associated with those endeavors. Currently, only online sports betting is legal in the state of Indiana.