Alabama Senator Set to Propose Gambling Bill

An Alabama lawmaker is preparing a gambling bill that includes a state lottery and online sports betting ahead of the second half of the state legislative session. 

Senator Greg Albritton discussed his gambling bill before the opening of the Alabama Legislature on April 1. It will have 14 legislative days to get enough support from lawmakers to pass. However, even if the bill passes, a special ballot vote will be required from Alabama residents in September before passing it into law. It's far from certain that residents will get access to our best sports betting sites.

The bill would create an Alabama Gaming Commission to act as a regulatory body for gambling and a Gaming Enforcement Division within this to police gambling rules in a legal 

 While there are no specifics on how licensing would work, the bill includes sports betting at retail locations and through branded websites and mobile apps, so it would bring retail and online sports betting. Sportsbooks would be taxed at 24% on net revenues.

Albritton has stressed an urgency to get a gambling bill passed in the 2025 sessions, saying, “If we don’t get this done this year, I think we’re going to lose the opportunity of gaining control of this industry in Alabama. It’ll be running all over the place and growing like crazy because we have no controls.”

Other kinds of gambling in Alabama

The bill also proposes creating a state lottery in Alabama and the creation of the Alabama Lottery Corporation to oversee the implementation of this system. Part of this would create the Alabama Lottery Trust Fund to receive lottery funding, while the bill also calls for a Gaming Trust Fund to receive all gambling tax revenue and licensing fees.

Other types of gambling the bill will propose include creating six Class II gambling at racetracks in Jefferson, Macon, and Mobile, as well as bingo halls in Macon, Houston, and Greene. Sen. Albritton also calls for agreeing to a gaming compact with the Poarch Creek tribe to provide its gambling locations with Class II gaming. Every electronic game at a gambling establishment would incur a $2,500 tax. 

The bill also allows traditional raffles and bingo for charity as long as the fee does not exceed $25 and funds are raised for charity. 

Lawmakers hoping to get over the line

Alabama lawmakers who favor sports betting will hope to avoid a situation like last year, when sports betting bills passed the House before being shot down in the Senate. The state has attempted to legalize sports betting several times, but residents still can't take advantage of our best sportsbook promos.

Meanwhile, the wait for a state lottery has gone on far longer, with lawmakers submitting legislation almost every year since 1999. Alabama is one of five US states without a state lottery.