Kansas facing sports betting headache as Attorney General weighs in
High-level review by federal official finds legal issues with Kansas Lottery proposed regulations
Kansas’s proposed launch of sports betting by the start of the new NFL season hit a potential roadblock after the state’s Attorney General identified “specific shortcomings” in proposed regulations.
The comments came just 24 hours after Kansas Governor Laura Kelly confirmed the state’s intention to soft launch sports betting on September 1, with a full launch taking place on September 8.
Enabling legislation allowing sports betting in the Sunflower State only came into force on July 1.
The proposed launch, if realized, would be one of the fastest journeys to fully regulated sports betting in any US state since the repeal of PASPA in May 2018.
Under Kansas statute, any proposed regulations must usually be reviewed by bodies including the Division of the Budget, the Department of Administration, and the Office of the Attorney General.
However, the state’s legislature, seeking an expedited launch process, introduced an exemption meaning a review by the Division of the Budget and the Department of Administration Review would not be required.
At present, this exemption leaves the Attorney General’s office as the sole reviewer of proposed sports betting legislation.
In a statement issued by Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office, and attributed to public information officer John Milburn, the office highlighted the gravity of the task.
“The Attorney General’s office is the only reviewer that can identify errors committed by the agencies in the hurried drafting of regulations that affect millions of dollars in wagering activity, and we take that responsibility seriously,” Milburn said.
“The Attorney General’s office has completed its expedited, but thorough, review of the several proposed regulations from the Kansas Lottery related to sports wagering and has approved three of those regulations and returned the others to the Kansas Lottery identifying specific shortcomings that must be remedied.”
Milburn continued: “We look forward to the Lottery quickly resolving these legal problems and resubmitting the regulations.
“Separate proposed regulations submitted by the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission on Wednesday remain under review, and we will continue to expedite that process,” he added.
Despite the Attorney General’s office throwing a spanner in the works, officials from the Kansas Lottery remained upbeat, suggesting no impact on the proposed soft launch date of September 1 and that any issues would be dealt with speedily.
In a statement, the Kansas Lottery cited its “excellent working relationship” with the Attorney General, suggesting there was “always an exchange of ideas and legal theories” over the course of regulatory approval by the office.
“This is an ordinary course of business with the Lottery and the Attorney General’s office, and the Lottery is confident that any issues the Attorney General has potentially identified will be worked out very quickly,” the Lottery said in a statement.
“Given our past experiences in working with the Attorney General’s Office, at this point we still believe we will make the September 1 soft launch date,” the statement added.