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Mississippi’s debate over legalizing mobile sports betting has resurfaced after Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann urged the state Senate to reject the proposal, citing concerns over gambling addiction, the impact on land-based casinos, and questions over its economic benefits.
In a post on social media platform X, Hosemann warned that online mobile sports betting poses a greater risk of gambling-related harm than in-person wagering, particularly for young adults who can receive betting notifications on their phones at any time.
“Online mobile sports betting increases the risk of gambling-related harm and addiction compared with traditional in-person betting. Our young adults are particularly susceptible and can receive push notifications to bet on their phones 24/7,” Hosemann wrote.
Hosemann added that the previous mobile sports betting bill approved by the Mississippi House of Representatives included a 25% tax cut for casinos and would not create new jobs in the state.
“The Senate should continue to reject this harmful legislation,” he wrote.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Trey Lamar argued that residents are already placing sports bets through illegal online operators.
“Everybody who wants to place wagers on their mobile device does it already today. And so to come out with a statement saying we don’t need it is, in the most respectful way possible, it’s really tone deaf to the reality of what’s going on in Mississippi right now,” Lamar said.
Lamar said lawmakers face a choice between legalizing mobile sports betting under the oversight of the state’s existing casino operators or stepping up enforcement against illegal gambling platforms.
“Either legalize mobile sports betting and allow our current casino operators to help regulate that environment, or enforce the law as it stands today and really investigate and go after these folks who are profiting off of Mississippians illegally,” he said.
Lamar added that he does not expect opposition in the Senate to derail the House’s efforts to legalize mobile sports betting.
Separate research by the University of Mississippi suggests online wagering is already widespread among college students in the state.
Dr. George McClellan, a professor of higher education at the university who studies gambling, said a survey of four-year college students found that about 40% had gambled during the past year, while more than half of those who bet on sports did so online.
“We surveyed four-year college students in Mississippi — about 40% reported gambling in the past year — and over half of the students who bet on sports said they were betting online,” McClellan said.
McClellan said online betting is associated with higher rates of addictive gambling behavior but noted his research team does not advocate for a particular legislative outcome.
“We need to invest in better data collection and better support networks. Because the thing I know we can’t do is we can’t stop it,” he said.