HELENA, Mont. (AP) – Montana officials say the state won’t offer sports betting until the end of the year, and possibly longer.
Montana Lottery Director Angela Wong told an interim legislative committee Tuesday that the timing depends on when the new regulations are finalized. They are being drafted and must go through a public comment period.
This spring, Montana became the seventh state to legalize gambling on sports after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that states could allow it.
The sponsor of the Montana bill, Democratic Rep. Ryan Lynch, previously said the goal was to allow people to place bets by the start of NFL football season this week.
Wong says “it’s quite a task to implement” sports betting and lottery officials never said they’d be ready by then.
Copyright 2019 The Associated Press.
