New Hampshire lawmakers have made progress with bills that would bring about changes for casino owners and the charities their revenues support.
House Bill 1203 mandates that casinos partner with charities without charging rent for game nights. Charities would receive 35 percent of the revenue, minus rent fees, with the state and casino owners sharing the remainder. Now in the Senate, this bill that has the support of casino owners and is expected to pass could increase charities’ proceeds by hundreds of dollars. During discussions with House members, casino owners said the maximum bet limit on table games increasing from $10 to $50 last year generated enough revenue to operate without rent payments.
Senate Bill 472 proposes that cities with casinos could collaborate with charities to raise money through charitable gambling. If approved, each casino could offer up to 10 nights a year. Additionally, Senate Bill 432 proposes expanding the number of charities that could benefit from charitable gaming revenue by giving the state 1.5 percent of horse race bets placed via an app. The collected proceeds will then be made available to charities not participating in charitable gaming. Sen. Tim Lang, the bill’s prime sponsor, estimates this tax could generate up to $300,000 annually.
House Bill 1549 addresses concerns over the high percentage of winnings withheld from casino gaming tournaments, proposing a cap of 20 percent or $250 per player, whichever is lower.
“I don’t think we’re going to see a whole lot of big tournaments but you might, like a holiday tournament,” said Rick Newman, a lobbyist for the New Hampshire Charitable Gaming Operators Association. “This would help them get that off the ground.”
The remaining bills aim to maintain limits on venues offering historic horse racing. The ban that will end July 1 was established to assess the effect of HHR since its legalization in 2021. Concerns have been raised about the potential over-saturation of HHR venues statewide.
“I know there are people who just like (with) the Oklahoma land rush are sitting at the border just waiting for the bell to go off, and you’ll see these things pop up just about everywhere,” Newman said.
In addition to allowing host communities to participate in charitable gaming, Senate Bill 472 also proposes banning additional HHR licenses for seven years. House Bill 1525 and Senate Bill 112 propose extending this cap indefinitely. Lawmakers intend to use the extension period to evaluate the effects of recent gaming legislation.
The deadline for the House and Senate to vote on bills and send them to the other chamber is April 11.
Just a few weeks ago, the New Hampshire Lottery announced that legal sports betting in the state has contributed $100 million to public education in its first four years.
