Virginia lawmakers resurrected a proposal to prohibit sportsbooks from excluding bonus and promotion costs from their taxable revenue after the first 12 months of accepting wagers, inserting language to that effect in the state’s biennial budget bill.
The legislature also barred the City of Richmond from holding a second referendum on building a land-based casino within the city limits until November 2023 and directed a state commission to evaluate the potential revenues from a casino in the City of Petersburg.
In another shot at Richmond, lawmakers also prohibited the Virginia Lottery from awarding an initial casino license to “any eligible host city” that didn’t pass a referendum on casino gaming before July 2022, and to not issue a license until a vote was held on or after November 2023.
The two-year budget, estimated at $59.7 billion, passed with bipartisan support in the House of Delegates (88-7) and the Senate (32-4) and has been sent to Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin for his signature. The governor has line-item veto power, so it’s unclear if the aforementioned changes will make it into the final budget, which must be finalized on June 30. The fiscal year starts on July 1.
Bonus Bets Expire in 7 Days. One New Customer Offer Only. Additional Terms Apply.
- Quality welcome offer
- Some of the best promos
- Variety of betting markets
Lawmakers Target Deducting Bonus and Promo Costs
HB 29, the biennial budget bill, includes verbiage on ending the deduction of bonus and promo costs from taxable revenue. The language is similar to HB 1103, a bill that Del. Mark Sickles (D-Franconia) introduced in the regular session and never made it out of committee.
Sickles and other lawmakers have long complained that Virginia didn’t get the revenue from sports betting that state analysts had predicted and that the generous loophole for deducting bonus and promo costs is to blame.
The two-year budget includes one amendment that prevents the City of Richmond from holding another local referendum on casino gaming until November 2023. A second amendment stipulates that the Virginia Lottery not issue a casino license for an eligible city that didn’t hold a successful referendum before July 1, 2022 — and that a vote must be successful and held on or after November 1, 2023.
A separate provision of the budget directs the state’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to study the feasibility of building a casino in Petersburg. Lawmakers directed the JLARC to retain the same firm it used in its analysis of proposed casinos in Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Richmond.
Richmond voters narrowly defeated the first referendum on the casino in November 2021. The vote was 49% to 51% against the proposal by Urban One to build a casino in the capital city.
Norfolk Planning Commission OK’s Temporary Casino
Meanwhile, the Pamunkey Indian Tribe’s plans to build its HeadWaters Resort & Casino in Norfolk took a small step forward.
At its May 26 meeting, the Norfolk Planning Commission endorsed a two-year conditional use permit for the tribe to open a temporary casino adjacent to Harbor Park, the home stadium for the Norfolk Tides minor league baseball team.
The city council must still give its approval and will likely take the issue up at its meeting on June 14. The conditional use permit calls for the temporary casino to be open no later than July 1, 2023. The tribe said construction of the temporary facility, as well as the hiring and training of employees, is expected to take six to nine months.
Slides from the meeting show the tribe’s plans call for opening the temporary casino in a vacant restaurant and a boxing club that was shuttered from the pandemic. Rodney Ferguson, Executive Vice President for the Pamunkey Indian Tribal Gaming Authority, told the planning commission that the temporary casino would have 625 slots and “some electronic table games.”
“The whole goal is to introduce Class III gaming to the Hampton Roads area,” Ferguson said, adding that the temporary casino “will be a teaser to our permanent facility.
“It will be a first step into the Norfolk market that will showcase what HeadWaters can actually do. It will be the first time that you will see the various types of games that are offered throughout the gaming industry, very similar to what you’ll find in Las Vegas again, on a smaller scale.”
Ferguson added that the two-year license would help the tribe “develop a database of players” and allow their guests to earn rewards points they can redeem up to and after the permanent facility opens.
John Thompson, a spokesman for the tribe, told the planning commission that it had agreed to purchase $175,000 in kitchen equipment for the Tides as part of their partnership, contingent upon the city council also giving their approval.
“MLB has been very proactive in trying to drive viewership, and to create synergies and things that benefit their league and franchises,” Thompson said. “They have been very aggressive in promoting partnerships with gaming operators.” He said the league did have one requirement, which the tribe agreed to: There would be no access to the casino from the stadium concourse. Patrons would have to exit the stadium in order to enter the casino.
The temporary facility is planned for the west side of the stadium. The permanent facility, much larger in scope, is planned for the east side. The Tides are the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles.
Sportsbook Partner Still Unknown
The tribe has still not announced whether it will partner with an operator for its sportsbook or develop one in-house. The Pamunkey Indian Tribal Gaming Authority did not return a message seeking comment.
It did not appear that plans for the temporary casino proposed for Harbor Park included a retail sportsbook.
A sportsbook at the Norfolk casino will compete against Hard Rock Sportsbook, Caesars Sportsbook, and likely BetRivers Sportsbook.
Hard Rock is building a casino in Bristol, while Caesars is doing the same in Danville. Rush Street Gaming — an affiliate of Rush Street Interactive (RSI), which owns the BetRivers and PlaySugarHouse brands — is opening a casino in Portsmouth.
