Online horse betting could be legal next weekFrom Pantagraph.comCLICK HERE FOR FULL STORY
Gambling on horse races on the Internet could become legal for Illinoisans as early as Wednesday.
The Illinois Racing Board is scheduled Tuesday to weigh giving three companies state licenses to handle online bets. If those companies are approved Tuesday, gamblers could use the approved Web sites to wager on horses from the comfort of their own homes as early as Wednesday.
"They're ready to go," said Mickey Ezzo, a spokesman for the Illinois Racing Board. "The infrastructure is all in place."
The infrastructure is in place because the sites are already in use, though they're not regulated and most likely illegal.
But earlier this year, lawmakers approved legalizing and regulating online horse betting. When the gambling sites are regulated, the Illinois horse racing industry gets a cut of the bets.
When bettors currently wager on Illinois races, none of the cut goes to the local industry.
Steve Brubaker, a spokesman for the Illinois Harness Horsemen's Association, said getting Illinois gamblers to use the licensed sites will be a key for the industry to benefit from online gambling.
Soon, the approved companies could start advertising, and Brubaker said he hopes the state will step up enforcement on non-licensed Web sites.
Betting at horse tracks and off-track betting parlors has declined steadily over the past several years.
"We think a great deal of that is people betting online," Brubaker said.
That's left the industry looking for a boost from anywhere. Estimates suggest the online betting could bring the state $1.5 million in additional revenue.
Opponents of online horse betting, though, argued letting people gamble online could lead to addiction and other problems.
The racing board meets Tuesday in Chicago.
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