New Jersey state officials have proposed adding a 0.25% tax on all sports wagers made within licensed state gambling enterprises. The proposed measures have been put forward in order to subdue corporate concerns regarding sports corruption and match fixing.
The proposal for 0.25% on sports wagers was penned by Atlantic County state Senator Jim Whelan and New Jersey representative Vincent Mazzeo, Forbes Online reports that the proposal was presented to Adam Silver, commissioner of the North American NBA basketball league, with a view to gaining support from other US professional sports leagues.
The news comes after New Jersey Governor Chris Christie recently announced that state licensed casinos and racetracks could legally offer sports betting services to their customers, without being persecuted by federal laws
Senator Jim Whelan has expressed concerns regarding the manner in which sports betting has been integrated within the state of New Jersey, commenting that the process to allow sports betting in New Jersey has not been properly thought through by the parties involved and will likely cause friction between New Jersey, regulatory stakeholders and professional sport leagues.
Mazzeo and Whelan have urged New Jersey officials to rethink their strategy in order to accommodate all stakeholders, The proposal outlines that while legalised sports betting has the potential to jeopardise the integrity of the game, additional tax collected in the state would help support counter-corruption efforts.
These funds would go towards creating a ‘Game Integrity Department’ at league offices, with this unit being tasked with investigating suspicious betting patterns.
“While we strongly support the legalisation of sports betting in New Jersey and the economic benefits it will bring to Atlantic City, we are cognisant that sports leagues like the NBA need the necessary resources to protect the integrity and fairness of games,” the letter stated.