There are ample metaphors for the sports betting situation in Kentucky.
The Bluegrass State could soon be βsurroundedβ by sports betting, or it could be an island in an ocean of sports betting, or it could be the missing puzzle piece between the upper Midwest and the South β choose whichever you like.
But how do two of the most vocal proponents of sports betting in the Kentucky legislature feel about another border state β Ohio β being on the verge of legalization?
Not great.
βSadly, I donβt know that it changes anything,β said Adam Koenig, a Republican member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, who has sponsored multiple bills to legalize sports betting in the state in recent years. βOpposition is not based upon proximity of other [sports betting] states. Itβs based on other things. Some people think itβs evil and sinning. Some people think their constituents donβt want it. Itβs fair to say voting ‘no’ on anything gambling is a safe vote, especially if youβre a Republican and have to face a Republican primary.β
Republicans have held control of the Senate in Kentucky since 2000 and control of the House since 2017, and 2022 is an election year.
But Koenig has no plans to stop. He intends to sponsor another sports betting bill during the Kentucky legislative session that will run Jan. 4-April 14. He has the support of state Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer, but it has to get out of the House first.
βIf Representative Koenig can get his bill out of the House, I will push for its passage in the Senate, but if I had to make a prediction, it would be that weβll be one of the last states to do it.β Thayer said.
A motivated, organized opposition
The support for sports betting in Kentucky from Koenig and Thayer is rooted in their desire to increase revenue for the state, and they see those dollars exiting every day, whether it is over the bridge from Louisville to Indiana or across the southern border into Tennessee. There are stories about a McDonaldβs parking lot in Jamestown, Tenn., that is often full of Kentucky license plates.
Revenue doesnβt factor into the equation for an organization like the Kentucky Family Foundation (KFF), which opposes gambling expansion. KFF spokesman Martin Cothran said the organization opposes expanded gaming morally as well as constitutionally.
βKentucky is not a wealthy state,β Cothran said. βThe poor are under assault from high-interest, short-term loans, drug issues, and more, so socially, I donβt see how this helps the state. Itβs one more temptation for them to use their money.β
Thayer and Koenig disagree with the moral argument.
Sports betting has “not proven to have all the negative societal consequences opponents bring up, and it has been proven to be a boon to state coffers,β Thayer countered.
But the influence from the KFF and other groups is strong, so much so that Koenig said βthere is a third of House Republicans that are just going to be a βno.β Period.β On the other side of the issue, there may be similar passion, but organization is lacking.
βThere isnβt really a grassroots effort to pass sports betting, and that could move things up [if it existed], because the resistance to it is pretty well organized,β Thayer said. βItβs frustrating, because the people who really want sports betting are the fans, and they just donβt understand how difficult it is to get a bill like that through the General Assembly.
βThey beat up on Adam and me, but take a timeout. Weβre your ally. Use that energy to convince people who are opposed to it.β
Hey @GovAndyBeshear @damon_thayer This will drive state revenue.
Great innovation.
Ever hear of it?#sportsbetting #legalsportsbetting https://t.co/XBz1YNrIo9— You Can Call Me Al (@TwoThirdsSports) August 19, 2021
Recovering from a ‘bloody’ battle over HHR
There is also the sense that Kentucky legislators might not have the appetite for another knock-down, drag-out fight about gaming after a particularly tense process over a historical horse racing (HHR) bill, which passed in February. HHR technically uses parimutuel principles, but it is displayed to bettors as a slot machine.
This is not a slot machine pic.twitter.com/OD3URjvJH1
— Jeremy Balan (@jeremybalan) December 6, 2018
β[HHR] was very different, and the question is whether there is the will to push that hard for another gambling bill so soon after,β Thayer said. βIβm not sure there is the bandwidth for that.β
On that specific aspect, Cothran and Thayer agree.
βI donβt think sports betting is going to gain a lot of traction, particularly after that last fight [over HHR], because it was so bloody,β Cothran said. βThere are still a lot of raw feelings from that debate, and there will be stiffer opposition to this. In both chambers, leadership decided not to stand in the way [of HHR], and that put a lot of their members in a difficult position. Thatβs the reason for some of the bad feelings left over.
βTo do it again in the next session β I donβt think thatβs going to happen. At some point, leadership knows it has to protect its members from these kinds of votes, because itβs so controversial to their members. β¦ I donβt think anyone has the stomach for that this session.β
But there are subtle differences between the HHR debate and the one over sports betting. Itβs not just about the notion of gaming. For one, there was a sizeable impact on jobs for HHR parlors, which require staffing and infrastructure. Online sports betting would create jobs, but not on the same scale, so that is not as easy of an argument to convert a legislator who might be on the fence.
That means potentially crafting a new tactic to drum up support.
βWith HHR, we could point to tangible jobs, but on the flip side, everyone knows [sports betting] has been going on in their district since they invented sports,β Koenig said. βEvery legislator in Kentucky β if they donβt know a bookie, they know someone who can get a bookie. Itβs out in the open. In addition to bookies and overseas, you can now Venmo a buddy in a surrounding state if you want to bet a [University of Kentucky] game, and he can Venmo you back.
βThe best argument now is βHey, here is something that is happening, and we have no protection. Letβs regulate it, and if someone wins a bet, they donβt have to track down a bookie to get paid.ββ
Another argument Thayer uses is the conservative principle of personal responsibility.
βNobody is forcing anybody to make a bet on the Super Bowl,β Thayer said. βRepublicans need to understand that we came to power offering people freedom, not trying to dictate what people do with their lives.β
Does Beshear’s support hurt or help?
While the sports betting debate in Kentucky is primarily an issue within the Republican Party, there is some question as to whether a bill would be easier to get through if the state had a Republican governor.
Gov. Andy Beshear is a Democrat, and heβll be around until at least December of 2023. There is a sense that some Republicans may not want to hand Beshear a political win, as he has supported sports betting in Kentucky.Β While Koenig and Thayer donβt think it is a huge factor, they donβt dismiss it.
βThere probably are people out there who donβt want to give the governor a win on anything, and this could be viewed as a win,β Thayer said. βIt worked against us on HHR, without a doubt. But why do we want to give him a win? Because itβs the right thing to do.
βWe donβt really like the guy, but [on other issues] weβve said, βOK. This is the right thing to do for the state.β Sometimes you just have to put down your pitchforks and your torches and try to do the right thing.β
Could modifying the bill help?
Legalization of fantasy sports and poker have also been included in Koenigβs bills in the past. While he is reticent to disclose what he might be willing to drop from a sports betting bill to get it passed, he acknowledged dropping poker might be on the table.
βThere are a couple people that want to see the online poker gone, because they view it as a casino game, even though itβs not,β Koenig said. βIt’s a game of skill. The frustrating part for me, personally, is that I wonβt bet sports, I wonβt bet DFS, but I will play and supplement my income on poker.
βIf it has to come out for the greater good, thatβs something I would have to consider.β
Rural influences and age
For some time, sports betting in Kentucky has been painted as a rural vs. urban issue, but Koenig has shifted his thinking, at least a bit. He now considers age might be the most significant factor.
βPeople in the seats change, and voter opinion does change,β he said. βIf youβre under 40, you donβt see a problem with this. As seats [in the legislature] turn over, theyβre many times more likely to be supportive of this.β
And although Koenig is outside of those age parameters, at 50, heβs willing to try to outlast his opponents.
βOne day Iβm going to get there,β he said. βIβm not leaving until itβs done.β