Mississippi’s 2026 legislative session will go down in the history books as another futile attempt to legalize mobile sports betting. Despite the House passing two separate mobile sports betting measures, the Senate dashed any hope that one or both would reach the governor’s desk.
Senate Sinks Online Sports Betting
“Mississippi mud” is a term for the earthy, brownish-orange sediment on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River. Although online sports betting bills in the Magnolia State are colorless, they have repeatedly become the residue of the legislative process, courtesy of the state’s upper chamber.
For the third consecutive year, the House has passed online sports betting bills only to see the Senate relegate them to the congressional dustbin of history. Rep. Casey Eure’s initial salvo at legalizing digital sports betting came in the form of HB 1581, which the House passed 85-31.
However, that did not pass muster in the Senate, which spawned Eure’s second bill, the Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act, HB 4074, which advanced 100-11 in the lower chamber. But once again, mobile sports betting’s biggest foe in the state, Senator David Blount, made sure this bill also died in the Senate Gaming Committee.
Balancing Casino Relief with Mobile Betting Revenue
Blount’s primary argument against mobile sports betting stems from his perspective that it would have a deleterious effect on the state’s casinos. Eure attempted to assuage those concerns by cutting the casinos’ tax rate from 8% to 6%, which would have saved those operations an estimated $48 million. Moreover, Eure boosted the tax on mobile sports betting profits from 18.5% to 22%, which was more in line with the national average.
Eure, the House Gaming Committee chairman, testified in front of the lower chamber in February, stating, “Mobile [sports betting] at 22% is projected to bring in $100 million per year.” Eure also added that the tax cut to land-based casinos would allow them to “reinvest in their properties, give employees pay raises, do things they need to do to keep them up and going to stay competitive in our market.”
Digital Sports Betting Prospects Dreary
Representative Eure defended his advocacy of mobile sports betting by saying, “By legalizing mobile sports betting, we can eliminate much of the illegal market – including protecting underage bettors – and provide real consumer safeguards in a regulated environment. This legislation will also give our brick-and-mortar casinos a new revenue stream to ensure their continued success, while the state revenue generated will help close the gap in funding for our Public Employees’ Retirement System.”
Under Eure’s proposal, each land-based casino would be allowed to partner with one online sports betting operator in addition to getting the 2% tax break. However, Senator Blount did not agree and has repeatedly stymied those efforts.
“The most recent bill from the House included a 25% casino tax cut that will cost the state about $50 million a year,” Blount said. “So, there was really no meaningful financial benefit to the state from expanding mobile gambling.”
Yet, the senator failed to mention the projected $100 million in revenue generated by the mobile sports betting market. Nevertheless, Blount has announced he will run for reelection in 2027, quashing rumors he would be leaving the Senate and running for Secretary of State.
Therefore, if Blount successfully runs for reelection next year and maintains his chairmanship of the Senate Gaming Committee, the likelihood of mobile sports betting passing in Mississippi is dubious at best.
