A wagering excise tax was first passed by Congress in 1951, imposing a 10% tax on sports betting revenues and a $50 “occupational stamp” for each person employed in book operations.

If that sounds hostile to legal Nevada sportsbooks — the only ones out there at the time — it was meant to be, according to research by Sports Betting Community Limited (SBC) and the Gaming Law Society of the Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

Those were the organizers of a recent SBC-hosted webinar entitled “Is it Time for Sports Betting’s Federal Excise Tax to Go?” – and all three panelists answered in the affirmative.