Minnesota Rejects Sports Betting Study, Stalling Legalization Hopes

A Missed Opportunity

“This is a year of real uncertainty,” said Committee Chair Ann Rest, citing the proposal’s prematurity amid a stalled state budget. With 38 states already tapping into the betting market, Minnesota remains sidelined.

As Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders negotiate a two-year budget behind closed doors, a special session looms after May 19, leaving advocates like Sen. Matt Klein frustrated and tribal nations waiting.

The rejected measure, detailed by MinnPost, didn’t push for legalization but merely a study by the Taxes, Finance, and Human Services committees.

“Sports betting continues to draw the most controversy,” Rest said, pulling the proposal from an omnibus tax bill. The House’s tax bill ignored the idea, and Rest’s amendment passed without pushback.

“We’re abandoning Minnesotans,” said Klein, who’s long championed betting at Minnesota’s 11 tribal sites. “It’s a missed chance,” he added, noting unregulated apps thrive in the void.

Minnesota’s Stalled Progress

MinnPost highlights why Minnesota lags behind. Since the 2018 Supreme Court ruling opened sports betting to states, 30 allow mobile wagers, but Minnesota’s proposals keep tanking.

Klein’s 2024 bipartisan deal, balancing tribal and racetrack interests, went nowhere, and his tribal-only betting plan got axed in February. “Every app on our phones mimics gambling’s addictive parts,” said Sen. Erin Maye Quade, voicing concerns about predatory platforms.

Racetracks, holding Minnesota’s legal betting market, clash with tribes pushing for exclusivity, creating a tough political knot.

The sports betting fumble ties into bigger chaos at the State Capitol, per MinnPost. With the legislative session ending May 19, 2025, budget talks between Walz and leaders like Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy are stuck.

“A special session is very likely,” Murphy said, as the tax bill and other key legislation stall. Minnesota’s losing tax dollars to states like Iowa, where bettors flock. MinnPost notes a National Conference of State Legislatures report saying states are shifting focus to revenue stability, cooling the betting “frenzy.”