The Maryland Sports Wagering and Application Review Commission (SWARC) has approved regulations to speed up the launch of mobile sports betting.
The move comes after governor Larry Hogan urged the commission to “accelerate and intensify” its work to get mobile sports gambling up and running by September. However, the launch date is still uncertain.
The commissioners have signed off on the amended online licensing procedures, which now go to the Maryland Legislature’s Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review for emergency approval. If the legislature ratifies the altered online sportsbook licensing process, SWARC will begin fielding applications and issuing permits to approved entities.
According to Tom Brandt, SWARC chair, eliminating those licensing standards will allow SWARC to more easily issue mobile permits. It will do so by identifying entities already qualified and regulated by other state minority laws, most specifically the six land-based casinos.
He stressed that excluding race and gender from the licensing criteria now will not prevent the state from achieving racial, ethnic, and gender diversity among the licensees in the future.
Brandt said that will be accomplished as the state issues additional mobile and small business sports betting licences once the disparity analysis is completed.
The disparity analysis is crucial, as the state must demonstrate discrimination in a marketplace before it can give preferential consideration to minority applicants.
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