IGRA Gaming Regulations Could Stop Florida Sports Betting
U.S. Supreme Court Could Decide Matter
When the U.S. Department of the Interior took no action on the 2021 Gaming Compact between the State of Florida and the Seminole Tribe, sports bettors were happy. The compact allowed the tribe to conduct online sports betting.
But more than one person was surprised the Department of the Interior allowed the compact to pass. It went against one of the main points of the Indian Gaming Regulations Act. The IGRA gaming regulations state that only gambling on “Indian land” is permitted under the act.
However, when the Department of Interior let the compact pass, it went against established precedent.
“After thorough review under IGRA, we have taken no action to approve or disapprove the Compact before August 5, 2021, the 45th day,” Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Bryan Newland wrote to Florida Gov.
Ron DeSantis and Seminole Tribe of Florida Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr. “As a result, the Compact is considered to have been approved by operation of law to the extent that it complies with IGRA and existing Federal law.”
The compact took a liberal interpretation of what constitutes “Indian land.” It stated it considered wagers placed through servers located on Tribal property as being made on Tribal lands. But U.S. courts have disagreed with that interpretation in the past.
Lawsuits Quickly Filed
West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corporation filed a federal lawsuit to stop the compact.
“’Deeming’ the bet to have been placed on Indian lands because the servers are located there contradicts decades of well-established precedent interpreting applicable federal law,” the lawsuit reads. “Contrary to the legal fiction created by the 2021 Compact and Implementing Law, a bet is placed both where the bettor and the casino are each located.”
The lawsuit states the compact violates the Wire Act of 1961, the Unlawful Gaming Enforcement Act of 2006, and IGRA. By allowing people to make wagers through online sports betting sites, it violates IGRA, it said.
The state’s own words could come back to haunt it. Florida previously argued bets must be placed on Tribal lands to fall under the IGRA gaming regulations. The matter involved the Couer d’Alene Tribe in Idaho and online gaming.
Supreme Court Asked to Intervene
Both the Seminoles and the two plaintiffs have won a round in court. The casinos filing the lawsuit won in court. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed the district court’s ruling on June 30, 2023.
The plaintiffs then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, while asking for an immediate halt to the compact. The Supreme Court agreed and put a temporary hold on the compact. But the stay was lifted several weeks later and the Seminole Tribe began offering online sports betting.
Noted sports betting attorney Daniel Wallach filed a 32-page amicus brief with the Supreme Court earlier this week. He agrees with the plaintiffs that the compact should be disallowed.
“A careful examination of the relevant compact provisions confirms that off-reservation tribal gaming activities are expressly ‘authorized’ by the compact,” he wrote. “The compact’s authorization of off-reservation tribal gaming operations constitutes a clear violation of IGRA’s “Indian lands” limitation.”
This is good news and bad news for sports bettors in the state. If the Supreme Court says the compact violates IGRA gaming regulations, there will be no place to legally bet sports in Florida.
But the current law allows just Hard Rock Bet in Florida. Being the only permitted sportsbook in Florida means it doesn’t have to worry about the competition. That eliminates the need for sports betting bonuses and other readily available promotions in a competitive market.
The Supreme Court is under no obligation to take up the appeal. Sports bettors in Florida will be watching with interest.
For gambling news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
