A pair of lawmakers from gaming-friendly states are taking another bipartisan shot at repealing a longstanding federal tax on sportsbooks.
On Friday, U.S. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., reintroduced the Withdrawing Arduous Gaming Excise Rates (WAGER) Act, which would exempt regulated sports betting operators from the current 0.25 percent federal excise tax placed on all legal wagers. The bill’s sponsors say the WAGER Act will “protect legal sportsbooks and gaming businesses” and “help states like Nevada and tribal communities reinvest their gaming revenues into their local economies.”
