New Hampshire deluged with flurry of casino bills; time is ticking

Article by : Charles Perrin Mar 13, 2024

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New Hampshire legislators are frantically working through a flurry of gaming bills that could significantly alter the casino landscape in the state.

Indeed, the bills put forward are similar, but they will shape the focus of charities who depend on gaming revenues from casinos, and revise the rules surrounding gambling tournaments.

With a deadline of April 11 set for the House and Senate to vote on the measures before they are dispatched to the other chamber, there is plenty of legislation to work through.

Under current New Hampshire state law, casinos are mandated to partner with casinos to operate.

House Bill 1203 mandates casinos can’t charge charities rent for hosting gaming nights. Charities are supposed to receive 35% of the revenue collected, but rent fees lower their take.

Some charities are often forced to pay as much as $750 a night for the privilege, but that often equates to half of their winnings.

HB1203 isn’t expected to face stiff opposition from senators as casino owners support it. This is because New Hampshire increased the maximum bet limit on table games from $10 to $50, and that has increased revenues enough to operate without rent payments.

Meanwhile, Senate Bill 472 will task municipalities with casinos to team up with charities in raising money through charitable gaming.

The measure would allow municipalities to raise funds on up to 10 nights a year; Nashua would get up to 30 nights because it is home to three casinos. In December, charities collected $2 million in gaming revenue.

However, there is some fine print. Municipalities can’t displace charities as they can be allocated game nights only if a charity doesn’t want it.

A third bill under consideration, Senate Bill 432, intends to expand the number of charities that could benefit from charitable gaming revenue.

SB432 would give the state 1.5% of certain horse race bets placed via an app and request the New Hampshire Lottery Commission to make the proceeds available for those charities that don’t participate in charitable gaming.

Apart from that, an existing moratorium on new venues offering historic horse racing, will expire on July 1, 2024.

There are 14 casinos eligible to hold HHR licenses, while five applications are under review.

Nevertheless, venue owners agree that a limit on competition is required.

Rick Newman, a lobbyist for the NH Charitable Gaming Operators, said: “I know there are people who just like (with) the Oklahoma land rush are just waiting for the bell to go off, and you’ll see these things pop up just about everywhere.”

Perhaps the biggest piece of legislation that could shake things up is House Bill 1549 which would cap the withholdings of what players would pay to enter a tournament.

At the moment, a tournament with a $2,500 buy-in would see the prize pool drop by $500 per player, but capping the fee at 20% or $250 per player, whichever is lower, would incentivize gamblers.