Dina Titus Revives Push to Scrap Federal Sports Betting Tax

Legislative Effort and Core Arguments

This bill targets a 0.25% excise tax, known as the “handle tax,” slapped on every legal sports wager since 1951 to curb illegal gambling. Titus says that purpose is outdated now, with 38 states and Washington, D.C., running legal sportsbooks.

The duo’s been at this before, pushing similar bills in 2019, 2021, and 2023. They argue the tax gives illegal bookies an edge since those operators skip it entirely. In Nevada alone, sportsbooks paid $22 million in handle taxes in 2022, per Titus’s figures, nearly double 2019’s take and four times the U.S. average.

Titus points out the IRS can’t even say where that cash goes in the federal budget. “It makes no sense to handicap legal operators with a tax the government doesn’t track,” she said. The bill aims to level the field and boost legit betting markets.

This isn’t her only play. Titus also filed the Shifting Limits on Thresholds (SLOT) Act, looking to bump the slot win reporting threshold from $1,200 to $5,000, with an inflation adjustment baked in.

Economic Stakes and Industry Context

Americans plan to drop $3.1 billion on NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments in 2025, up from $2.7 billion in 2024, per industry estimates. Nevada’s 2023 numbers tell the story: $8.26 billion wagered, $481.3 million in revenue, and $32.5 million in state taxes, per state records.

That’s a solid haul, but the federal handle tax nibbles at the edges – $20.6 million from Nevada’s bets alone at 0.25%. Titus and Reschenthaler say scrapping it would keep more cash in legal hands, not offshore pockets.

The tax dates back to when Nevada stood alone in legal betting. Post-2018, after the Supreme Court axed PASPA, 38 states jumped in, and the landscape flipped. Legal operators argue the tax, plus a $50-per-employee annual fee, stacks the deck against them.

Illegal books, dodging both, can offer better odds, think -105 vs. -110 on a standard line. In Pennsylvania, where Reschenthaler hails from, a 36% state tax already squeezes sportsbooks; the federal cut just piles on. Nationwide, legal betting hit $11 billion in revenue in 2024, per AGA data, while offshore bets siphon $1-$2 billion untaxed.

Titus’s angle is practical. She once asked the IRS where handle tax money lands and got no clear answer. With no federal tracking, she sees it as a pointless burden. The SLOT Act ties in too, raising the slot threshold could cut paperwork for casinos and players, syncing with her push to ease gaming’s load. Neither bill’s a slam dunk yet; past tries stalled in committee. But with betting’s growth, momentum might finally build.