Fantasy Sports Betting In Iowa Moves To The Next Round

A bill to legalize fantasy sports betting has advanced to the next round. The House Ways and Means Committee voted 23-2 on Wednesday and now will be eligible for the full House debate.

If the bill is approved, Iowans could legally bet on a variety of sporting events. A similar version has been approved by the Senate in the past.

According to the American Gaming Association, Americans have wagered an estimated $10.4 billion alone on this years NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. Of that $10.4 billion, only .3% ($295 million) is actually wagered legally. That means that over $10 billion is wagered through off-shore websites or bookies.

If the bill is approved, wagering on sports would be legal in Iowa and taxed & regulated by the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission that oversees gambling and gaming in the state.

However sports wagering would not be a big payout for the State of Iowa. The Waterloo/Cedar Falls Courier reports that the bill manager Rep. Matt Windschitl, estimates the return could be $250,000 for the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund and $250,000 for the general fund. Rep Windschitl said “I’m not doing this for the revenue, I’m doing this to give Iowans more freedom. To give them the freedom to play, if they want.”

[VIA WCF Courier]