Published: June 2, 2021
By: Ryan Nelsen | LSU Manship School News Service
BATON ROUGE—Sports gambling is on its way to Louisiana, and legislators have a plan to divvy up the tax money.
Sen. Rick Ward, a Republican from Port Allen, passed a bill through the Senate with a 33-3 vote. Ward’s measure, Senate Bill 142, will work hand-in-hand with the final legislative rules for sports wagering that are still to be determined.
“I don’t know when the first deposits would happen,” said Ward. “There’s a provisional license to let this start as early as the fall.”
Ward added amendments to the bill during the floor meeting detailing just how the money will be distributed:
20% TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
The bill states that the Education Fund is not to exceed over $10 million in payout from gambling revenue on real sports events. Fantasy sports wagering, a separate type of betting that should be operational in the state before fall, will deposit all of its funds into early education.
10% TO THE PARISHES
The 55 parishes that approved sports wagering in 2020 will see some of the money return to them. Ten percent of what the state collects will be separated and given to parishes proportionately to the taxes pulled in.
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