Josh Green has indicated that he is open to discussing gambling bills, although he also expressed concern that legalization would only increase the number of people who are harmed by gambling habits.Ĭopyright 2023 Hawaii News Now. Senate leaders also said with an legislative agenda already packed with urgent issues, legalizing gambling is almost certainly dead for the year. Holt and House leaders said that was the last we will hear of gambling this year. “I think maybe at some point this may be a worthy cause for us, but at this point, $7 million a year may not be worth putting our communities at risk,” Holt told the committee. If state-run lotteries are included, then 48 states allow some form of gambling (the exceptions are Hawaii, where gambling was. Daniel Holt, who sees lots of illegal gambling in his Kalihi district and recently supported a system of local sports betting and poker parlors, announced his recommendation was to kill the bill. federal law, there are significant restrictions pertaining to interstate and online gambling, as each state is free to regulate or prohibit the practice within its borders. Legislative leaders said with 35 states allowing online sports betting, it was the only form of gaming with even a slim chance of passing this year.Ĭommittee chair Rep. Gambling is the act of playing for stakes in the hope of winning (including the payment of a price for a chance to win a prize).
