Tennessee Earned $7.3M In Taxes On $410.8M In Sports Wagers In January
Image Credit: Public Domain
The Center Square [By Jon Styf] –
Tennessee’s sportsbooks collected $7.3 million in privilege tax on $410.8 million in bets in January.
Those numbers are lower than the totals for November and December, when the state collected more than $9 million of tax on nearly $440 million in wagers each of those months.
In January, the sportsbooks reported $36.3 million in adjusted gross income on the $410.8 million in wagers.
Tennessee collects 20% of the industry’s net operator revenue in taxes. Of the sports gambling taxes, 80% goes to education, 15% goes to the state for distribution to local governments and 5% goes toward mental health programs.
Tennessee currently has 12 approved online sportsbooks with Wagr temporarily offline due to technical changes on its app. The Tennessee Sports Wagering Advisory Council is scheduled to vote to approve Fanatics Sportsbook at its Wednesday morning meeting.
At that meeting, the board is also expected to hear a report on violations of the state’s sports wagering rules. At the meeting, the council will determine what the punishment for those violations will be, Sports Wagering Advisory Council Executive Director Mary Beth Thomas told The Center Square.
Barstool Sportsbook will receive notice for allowing individual prop wagers on a collegiate sports event while Seminole Hard Rock allegedly violated rules related to geolocation and proper registration before allowing wagers.
Nine operators did not hit the 10% Tennessee state hold requirement. Tennessee’s sports wagering rules require sportsbooks to make more than 10% in adjusted gross income on wagers each year.
The thought behind the rule, according to PlayTenn, is to ensure Tennessee receives a certain amount of tax money based upon the sportsbook income.
About the Author: Jon Styf, The Center Square Staff Reporter – Jon Styf is an award-winning editor and reporter who has worked in Illinois, Texas, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan in local newsrooms over the past 20 years, working for Shaw Media, Hearst and several other companies. Follow Jon on Twitter @JonStyf.
Of the millions in taxes collected how much was spent on Gamblers Anonymous and other Social programs with all the money lost and families going hungry and bills going unpaid????