New Jersey Lawmaker Proposes 30% Tax on Online Gaming and Sports Betting

A fresh legislative proposal, Senate Bill 3064, has been put forward by New Jersey Senator John McGinn, aiming to increase the tax rate levied on online gaming and athletic wagering to a substantial 30%.

The bill was formally presented on the 8th of April, following its submission the previous week. It has been referred to the Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism and Historic Preservation Committee for review.

At present, the tax rate for online gambling and sports betting stands at 15% and 13% of gross gaming revenue, respectively.

Should this bill be passed, it would modify Section 17 of P.L.2013, c.27 (C.5:12-95.19), which currently defines the online gambling tax amount. Section 7 of P.L.2018, c.33 (C.5:12A-16), pertaining to sports betting tax, would also undergo revisions.

If lawmakers give their approval to this proposition, it would become effective on the subsequent January 1st following the date of enactment, as stipulated in the bill’s text.

The proposed 30% tax rate would impose a significant financial burden on New Jersey’s 18 mobile sports betting entities, elevating taxes to one of the highest levels within the United States. New York’s 51% sports betting tax rate currently holds the top spot in this competitive market, followed closely by Pennsylvania’s 36% GGR tax rate.

Several other states, such as Delaware, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, impose taxes on operators at a rate of 51% to 50% of gross gaming revenue, but all operate monopolies through government-run lotteries.

For internet casinos, New Jersey presently has one of the lowest tax rates and has 30 online gambling websites operating. A 30% gross gaming revenue tax would place the state ahead of Connecticut (18% of gross gaming revenue, increasing to 20% after five years), Michigan (20%), and West Virginia (15%).

Pennsylvania still has the highest tax rate on slot machines at 54%, though the tax rate on table games is 16%.

Did Ohio establish a precedent for increasing taxes?
If New Jersey proceeds with Senator McKeon’s proposal, it will double its tax rate, following Ohio’s lead.

Last July, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine raised the tax rate from 10% to 20% in the 2024-25 budget.

DeWine’s relationship with the industry soured just days after the launch of sports betting, primarily due to advertising. The state’s Casino Control Commission has since acted swiftly to crack down on what it considers excessive sports betting marketing.

New Jersey in the Limelight
New Jersey’s gambling industry has been a hot topic so far in 2024. In January, Senator Joseph Pennacchio reintroduced a bill to launch racetrack slot machines and restrict advertising. The bill has been introduced several times since 2014, but failed to pass the committee stage in 2020 and 2022.

In the following month, a research project conducted by the National Economic Research Associates, funded by the Fair Play for All campaign, revealed that New Jersey’s online gambling industry had a detrimental effect on the state’s financial standing. Despite the study’s claim that the state’s online gambling industry balanced out the escalating costs of gambling-related issues with its contribution to state taxes.

However, this conclusion clashes with a 2019 study by Dr. Alan Meister of iDEA Growth and Gene Johnson of Victor Strategies. Online casinos alone generated $401 million in employee salaries and 6,552 full-time positions between 2013 and 2018.

The research indicated that legal online gambling produced $259.3 million in tax revenue for state and local authorities over those five years, including $178.9 million in gambling taxes.

New Jersey’s gambling income reached an unprecedented peak of $5.78 billion in 2023, a record high. Income remained elevated in January alone, reaching $559.1 million, a 28.0% increase compared to the same period last year.

Sign up for the iGaming newsletter.