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Online Sports Betting Bill Introduced in Nebraska Legislature

Andrew Brennan

Last Updated: July 30, 2024 3:42 PM EDT • 1 min 63 sec read.

Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg gives direction against the Texas A&M Aggies.
Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg gives direction against the Texas A&M Aggies. Photo by Petre Thomas via USA TODAY Sports.

The best sports betting sites may be coming to Nebraska, as lawmakers introduced bills last week that could bring legal sports betting to the state.

Sen. Eliot Bostar introduced Legislative Bill 13 last Thursday during the first day of a special session of the legislature.

Notes from the session state:

"LB13, introduced by Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, which would allow an authorized gaming operator to conduct sports wagering by means of an online sports wagering platform under the Nebraska Racetrack Gaming Act, change the distribution of taxes collected from sports wagering and change requirements relating to proposals for constitutional amendments submitted by the Legislature."  

The bill would also lift Nebraska's betting ban on the state’s college teams when playing games in-state. However, bettors would still be prohibited from wagering on college player props and placing live bets in games involving Nebraska colleges.

Bostar also introduced Legislative Resolution 3CA. It would put forth a proposed constitutional amendment before voters in November to authorize using the best sports betting apps. The measure needs the support of three-fifths of the legislature, as well as the majority of voters to pass.

Sports betting going mobile?

Nebraska legalized sports betting in 2021, though it's allowed to occur only within the confines of the state's racing tracks and casinos.

However, on Wednesday, Gov. Jim Pillen called for the aforementioned special session of the legislature. Its focus was on bills related to reducing property taxes.

One of the areas that could provide some relief is mobile sports betting, which is how Nebraska could soon have access to the best sportsbook promos.

LB13 states: “The Legislature finds that Nebraska relies more heavily on local property taxes to support public education compared to other states and consistently ranks in the top 10 among all states in terms of per capita property tax burden on its citizens.

“The Legislature further finds that is important to authorize and impose a tax upon the gross gaming of sports wagering by means of an online sports wagering platform in order to create a property tax relief program to reduce the tax liability of property taxes paid to support public education.”

Changes to tax structure

Mobile sports betting can help provide property tax relief because sports betting revenue is subject to a 20% tax rate in Nebraska. Of that number, 70% is dedicated to property tax relief. Therefore, if the state could drive more sports betting - say, via the best live betting sites - there would be even more potential for further property tax offsets.

LB13 also proposes increasing the percentage of sports betting-related tax receipts that would fund property tax reductions from 70% to 90%. Additionally, 3% of tax revenue would flow to the state's Compulsive Gamblers Assistance Fund, 3.5% would go to the Racing and Gaming Commission's Racetrack Gaming Fund, and another 3.5% would be dedicated to the Racing and Gaming Commission's Racing Cash Fund.

If the proposed constitutional amendment is to go in front of voters in November, it would have to be submitted to the Secretary of State for certification by Sept. 1. If passed, online betting provisions wouldn't take effect until the middle of December. However, that'd still line up for a Super Bowl launch.

Written By:
Andrew Brennan
Andrew Brennan is a publishing editor for Sportsbook Review. He also heads the website’s MLB coverage, from the various futures markets to daily picks. Andrew believes a math-based approach is the best way to enjoy long-term success in sports betting, and he’s spent the better part of the last year fine-tuning his own process for MLB, NBA, and NFL picks. Andrew uses eight different sportsbooks to find the best odds available and various projection models to gather as much information as he can. His most used sportsbooks are bet365, FanDuel, and theScore Bet. When it comes to daily projection models, he regularly references NumberFire across all sports, as it’s one of the best free tools available. In terms of which daily markets Andrew attacks, he almost exclusively bets on pitcher strikeouts for baseball. When the winter rolls around, you’ll see him providing more variety when it comes to the NBA (points, assists, rebounds) and NFL (almost any offensive-based player prop). He used these tools to go +150 units in 2023. Andrew is also a passionate fantasy sports player. He’s played fantasy football, fantasy Premier League, and fantasy baseball for the last decade. He graduated from Durham College with his diploma in journalism after earning his degree in law from Carleton University. He’s worked in sports media since early 2017, first contributing at FanSided before moving to theScore. He joined SBR in 2022.