Group makes pitch to enact bets inMd.
An organization funded with $250,000 from DraftKings, the fantasy sports and betting site, says it is launching a media campaign Tuesday urging voters to support a November ballot question legalizing sports betting inMaryland.
Thecampaign is to begin with the launch of a website and a broadcast and cable advertisement in Baltimore. The campaign, whichsoonwill include ads in theWashington market, is sponsored by an advocacy group called “Vote Yes on Question 2” chaired by Marissa Coleman, a former University ofMaryland andWNBA basketball star.
“Sports betting has been going on forever,” Coleman said in an interview from France, where she still plays professionally. “It’s not like Marylanders aren’t betting on sports. This gives us the opportunity to regulate it andmake sure there is protection in place for the consumer.”
Marylanders have bet on games for years on offshore sites and, more recently, in Delaware, New Jersey, West Virginia, the District of Columbia and other jurisdictions that have launched sports wagering since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a congressional ban in 2018.
In March, a bill to put the question to Maryland voters was approved by the General Assembly. Gov. Larry Hogan did not sign or veto the measure, allowing it to become law.
Sports betting legalization has been backed in the state for years by Maryland casinos, sports teams, fantasy sports sites and others. If Question 2 is approved, it remains to be decided in Annapolis next year which entities — such as casinos or racetracks — would be permitted to offer sportswagering and howthe bettingwould be conducted.
Question 2 reads only: “Do you approve the expansion of commercial gaming in the State of Maryland to authorize sports and events betting for the primary purpose of raising revenue for education?”
The “Vote Yes on Question 2” organization received all of its funding — $250,000 — from DraftKings in July, according to state campaign finance records. The report covered the period from June 26 to Aug. 18 and it’s possible other organizations have contributed since then.
DraftKings is a Boston-based fantasy sports operator that has expanded into sports betting in states inwhich it is legal. In fantasy games, participants pay to draft actual players in football, baseball and other sports and then accumulate points based on their statistical performances.
The “VoteYes” groupwebsite says sports betting would raise an estimated $40 million a year in tax revenue forMaryland. It says the “the majority if not all of the funds raised will be spent on education.”
The Maryland State Education Association, the state’s largest teachers’ union, won’t take a position on the referendum until its annual convention in October, said Sean Johnson, the group’s executive director.
“We know we have significant unmet funding needs,” Johnson saidMonday in an interview.
The sports betting proposal “is by no means a complete solution to our education funding crisis. It could be part of a multi-faceted solution,” Johnson said.
It is uncertain if organized opposition will emerge to legalizing sports betting before theNov. 3 election.
Before the measure passed the General Assembly, Del. Nick Mosby of Baltimore had expressed concern that the sports betting license structure could exclude racial minorities orwomen.