Texas sports betting bill dead, sponsor says

Texas sports betting bill dead, sponsor says

Article brief provided by Legal Sports Report
  • Mike Mazzeo, Legal Sports Report
May 25, 2023 3:45 PM
  • Mike Mazzeo, Legal Sports Report

There will not be any last-ditch efforts to convince Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick that an online Texas sports betting bill should go to the ballot box.

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“No. The bill is dead,” bill sponsor Rep. Jeff Leach told LSR via text on Thursday.

Patrick already put the kibosh on the online TX sports betting bill after it advanced past the House for the first time.

The Texas legislative session ends Monday. Because state legislators meet in alternating years, the Lone Star State will not have another opportunity to pass sports betting legislation until 2025.

Proponents of standalone legislation had been hopeful that it could pass the House and Senate, setting up a Nov. 7 public vote for Texans to decide its fate.

However, after it passed the House, Patrick dashed those hopes in a pair of tweets on the weekend of May 13-14.