Sports Betting Can Commence At Monmouth Park

O’Scanlon Praises Bi-partisan Cooperation

Legal barriers to sports betting at Monmouth Park were removed today thanks to a bi-partisan effort lead by Senator Declan O’Scanlon, according to an announcement by the NJ Senate Republicans.

The legislation to regulate sports betting was amended today to remove a provision which would have barred any entity that takes sports bets in NJ prior to the bill becoming law from getting a sports betting license. The amended bill passed both houses of the legislature and now goes to Governor Phil Murphy for his signature. Concerns were raised earlier this week that Murphy would hold up signing the bill as part of budget negotiations with the legislature.

“Every now and then government works just as it should,” said O’Scanlon after the amended bill’s overwhelming passage. “This was one of those times.”

“We worked tirelessly to make our case that pulling the prohibitive language from the bill was the right thing to do. I’m happy to see that they acknowledged how critical it was to remove any punitive measures. I can’t thank Senator Sweeney and Speaker Coughlin enough for their open-mindedness and willingness to do the heavy lift to amend the bill. They were really class acts in this effort. This is a huge win for Monmouth Park, for Oceanport, for Monmouth County, sports enthusiasts and all state taxpayers.”

“Language in the original bill essentially prohibited any sports betting facility from opening until the bill was signed into law. I realized that the language could lead to the bill being caught up in contentious budget negotiations – and delay commencement of wagering for weeks, or longer. In their first day taking wagers, Delaware reportedly received over $320,000 in bets! There is no reason for government to unnecessarily hold up revenue for New Jersey.”

“Removing the language, which had really already done its job, was the smart solution. I made our case to the Senate President and the Speaker who both agreed. We worked together to bring our caucuses on board to secure the votes needed to make an emergency floor amendment and everything came together. I couldn’t be more thrilled or thankful! This is the type of honest, open-minded, cooperative effort that gives me hope we can get good things done in New Jersey government.”

“I applaud our legislative leadership on both sides of the aisle for finally helping to make sports betting a reality for New Jersey. I look forward to future successful, collaborative endeavors.”

Governor Murphy released a statement saying he would carefully review he bill.

Murphy’s office releases statement on sports betting, says needs to review final bill. pic.twitter.com/m4lC1a5mIx

— Nick Corasaniti (@NYTnickc) June 7, 2018