Sports betting and marijuana: New York’s answer to pandemic effected economy
Governor Cuomo is looking to follow New York’s neighbouring states by legalising mobile sports betting and recreational marijuana to boost its economy
According to Reuters, New York Governor – Andrew Cuomo – wants to follow the steps of New Jersey by legalising mobile sports betting and the use of recreational marijuana. These moves are expected to help boost the economy of the state which has been effected heavily by COVID-19.
Governor Cuomo (pictured) stated:
“New York has the potential to be the largest sports wagering market in the United States and by legalising online sports betting we aim to keep millions of dollars of tax revenue here at home, which will only strengthen our ability to rebuild from the COVID-19 crisis.’
New York look to follow a number of states that have legalised sports and mobile betting as they all look at other sources of revenue to recover from the pandemic which has negatively effected economies all over the world.
Under the Governor’s proposal, the New York State Gaming Commission would be given the authority to select a sports operator that is already in partnership with a licenced casino. The downside of this proposal for operators is that the plan will see a huge portion of the revenue go straight to the state rather than the casino.
Cuomo added, ‘We want to do so the way we do the lottery, where the state gets the revenues.”
The Governor’s administration also stated that it is estimated that New York will be able to add $500 million a year to the state’s economy should these plans go through.
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