Texas might have a poker game bearing its name, but this doesn’t mean the state is gambling-friendly. Texas Hold ’em poker is stated to have come from Robstown, TX, more than 100 years ago, and, for a while, we might discover betting all over. That is no longer the case, though, and it does not appear as anything will change soon. Efforts by a handful of legislators to bring legalized sports gambling and casinos to the Lone Star State are close to failing, as the current legislative session will end in less than a month.

Time’s Running Out For Texas Gaming Push

Attempts to bring legalized betting to Texas return several years. The defeat of PASPA in 2018 rejuvenated interest in a sports gambling market in the state and others, but no progress has been made because. The COVID-19 pandemic gave new life to casinos and sports gaming costs, supported by the assertion that legalized gambling would help improve the state’s earnings scenario. Even the state’s professional sports groups would have been permitted to get in on the action.

As much as public assistance has lagged legalized betting, it’s simply not in the cards this year. There is less than a month to precede the legal session ends, and none of the efforts to legislate any gambling in Texas have gotten beyond their first step. According to GOP Representative John Kuempel, they will not, either, as he told The Dallas Early morning News last week that there’s “not time for [betting] [to pass this session.” This is even though expenses have been live for a minimum of two months, and other jurisdictions throughout the US have been able to fast-track their legalized gambling efforts.

Texas Lawmakers Don’t Like Complications.

Because gambling growth in Texas requires a constitutional change, there’s more work to be carried out in the state than in others to legislate any brand-new gambling activity. Two-thirds of the legislative body would need to agree on any bill for it to be authorized, and the issue would then have to be put to a public vote. It was most likely deemed an overwhelming obstacle to be tackled in a short window, even though extended other mechanisms and legal sessions exist to offer legislators more time.

Even if some lawmakers won’t confess, what was maybe a more significant difficulty was that Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick vehemently challenge gambling growth in the state and has made it clear that there is no chance of any bill making it to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk. Regardless of this seemingly tricky obstacle, the legislators sponsoring and supporting the betting expansion costs stay optimistic that we can make progress. Texas will finally get to the millions of dollars in video gaming earnings it is presently missing. Las Vegas Sands will continue supporting the idea, too, most likely to inject countless dollars more into its Lone Star State betting campaign.