Mississippi House Passes Online Sports Betting Bill for Third Straight Year
Proponents hope using sports betting tax funds to pay down Mississippi's public pension shortfall and creating a fund for affected casinos will help measure finally pass in Senate.
Lawmakers in the Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday to legalize statewide online sports betting.
House Bill 1581 passed the chamber by a 85-31 vote, marking the third consecutive year Mississippi House members have passed an online sports betting bill. The measure allocates most of the taxes generated by online sports betting toward replenishing the state’s underfunded public pension system. However, it also sets aside $6 million annually through the 2029-30 fiscal year to cover any losses land-based casinos suffer as a result of mobile wagering.
Whether using sports betting revenue to reduce the pension shortfall will entice previously apprehensive senators remains to be seen. That said, restoring the pension plan’s solvency has been a topic of discussion in Jackson for years.
Last year, we were sending the money to roads and bridges. This year we’re going to put it to (the state pension program),” state Rep. Casey Eure, the Saucier Republican who sponsored the bill, said on the House floor Wednesday.
According to the Mississippi Legislature’s calendar for the 2026 session, the Senate must act on HB 1581 by March 11.
Bill Also Includes $600 Million Transfer to Pension Program
Previous attempts died in the state Senate. However, the House approved a floor amendment to the bill that would transfer $600 million from the Mississippi Capital Expense Fund, which the state uses to fund one-time projects and initiatives, into a public pension fund ranked among the least solvent in the country by U.S. News and World Report. In November, state leaders reported the fund had a $26 billion shortfall.
On top of the one-time funding, the bill would utilize the bulk of the online sports betting tax toward paying down the pension fund. According to the bill, the sports betting tax would be identical to Mississippi’s other gaming taxes, based on a progressive system with rates increasing as revenue increases. Each month, the first $50,000 of revenue is taxed at 4%,the next $84,000 is taxed at 6%, and the remainder of the monthly revenue is taxed at 8%.
Eure told colleagues on the floor that he expects Mississippi’s online sports betting taxes to fetch “a minimum” of $40 million annually.
Supporters Make ‘Good Faith’ Offer to Smaller Casinos
Among the opponents to opening Mississippi to online sports betting are the state’s smaller casinos. They contend they will lose business because bettors will no longer need to visit the nearest casino to place a bet. Instead, sports betting operators that have partnerships with other casinos in the state will entice bettors with bonuses and promotions to wager with them on their devices.
That is how sports betting has developed in most of the 32 states that already allow online apps. When Missouri released its first monthly report last week, it showed that FanDuel and DraftKings handled more than three-quarters of the money wagered. Those two have similar market share in other states that license multiple operators.
To accommodate those casinos, HB1581 would allocate the first $6 million in sports betting tax revenue to the fund and give it to casinos that meet specific requirements. Casinos requesting funding cannot offer online wagering, and they must show their annual sportsbook revenue was down compared to what they won in 2026.
The fund would be available for affected casinos for four years.
We put this in as a safeguard to some of the casinos that are against mobile sports betting,” Eure said. “Just to show our good faith that if they lose money, they can draw down over the $6 million.”
The hold-harmless fund likely won’t sway the smaller casinos or the National Association Against iGaming (NAAiG) from their opposition. NAAiG released the results of an online poll last week, which found that 62.1% of Mississippi registered voters were initially opposed to online sports wagering. That increased to 74.2% after pollsters provided additional information.
Gambling Insider delivers the latest industry news, in-depth features, and operator reviews that you can trust. Our team combines rigorous editorial standards with decades of specialized expertise to ensure accuracy and fairness. We are committed to delivering clear, impartial, and dependable coverage across the global gambling sector.
