No one can say at this point, but legislators in surrounding states are certainly heading in that direction, taking advantage of record revenues derived by eager online sports gamblers.
States New York’s 51% tax of online sports wagers has generated $1.9 billion for the Empire State in three years. New Hampshire also taxes its online sports wagers at the same rate. Legislators in neighboring New Jersey are mulling more than doubling its tariff on online sports wagers from 13% to 30%.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker wants to more than double that state’s online sports betting tax, drawing fire from several major online wagering providers.
Ohio lawmakers pushed through 2023 legislation that increased its online sports wager take to 20% from 10%.
And, at least one Massachusetts lawmaker pushed for that state to more than double its online sports wager rate from 20% to match New York’s 51%. However, state legislators killed that proposal Friday. Meanwhile, Iowa’s online sports wagering tax stands at mere 6.75%.
Pennsylvania lawmakers and Gov. Josh Shapiro have made no public comments concerning having any interest or appetite to raise the state’s current online sports wagering tax, which stands at 36%.
However, a peek at the raw numbers shows that state legislators could take a perfunctory look at it.
April revenue reports from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board showed total online sports wagering handle weighing in at $40,965,104.
A 36% tax on that number earned more than $14.7 million in taxes for the state. Taxed at New York’s 51% rate, Pennsylvania’s tax haul would increase to $20.8 million. Interactive gaming has been a windfall for Pennsylvania casinos and the state’s coffers, with online slot play at $126 million in April (a 31% year-over-year increase) and online table games at $45 million (a 15% year-over-year increase).
Online slot play is taxed at 54% in Pennsylvania with online table games having a 16% tariff, according to data provided by the American Gaming Association. Pennsylvania earned a record $5.7 billion revenue haul from all forms of gambling in 2023.
