Connecticut is one step closer to implementing sports wagering and online gaming.
Gov. Ned Lamont said in a news release Thursday that the state, Mashantucket Pequot Tribe and Mohegan Tribal Council have received the all-clear from the Bureau of Indian Affairs for their revised gaming compacts, which were submitted to the agency this summer.
"This critical step in the process of modernizing our gaming landscape here in Connecticut ensures that our state will have a competitive, nation-leading marketplace for wagering both in-person and online," Lamont said in the release. "I thank the Bureau of Indian Affairs for approving these revisions, as well as the efforts of our partners with the Mohegan Tribe and Mashantucket Pequot Tribe."
The Lamont administration worked with Rodney Butler, chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, and James Gessner Jr., chairman of the Mohegan Tribal Council, on the revisions.
Butler said in the release the "approval from the Department of the Interior is historic and begins and exciting new chapter for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation."
"This expansion will allow us to enhance investments in support of our tribe, to contribute additional revenue to the State of Connecticut, and to provide a new level of entertainment for our guests," Butler said.
Gessner thanked the governor and the state's Congressional delegation for their efforts.
"Modernizing our gaming industry will help protect and create Connecticut jobs, and it will generate tax revenues to the benefit of both state and local municipal budgets, as well as our tribe's members," Gessner Jr. said in the release. "This is not just a regional issue – it will have a statewide impact as Connecticut works to meet critical needs as it recovers from the pandemic."
Last month, according to the release, the General Assembly's Regulation Review Committee approved the recommended regulations as proposed by the state Department of Consumer Protection.
The department, the release said, "will now continue to licensing process and the review necessary to certify the gaming platforms."
Lamont is anticipating that sports wagering and online gambling will begin for state residents in October.
Original Location: Online gambling, sports wagering closer to fruition in Connecticut
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