Sports gambling is on the ballot again — thanks to its popularity.
State lawmakers want to keep the excess taxes collected from booming sports gambling businesses and use the money for water conservation projects. And, in Colorado, keeping excess tax money requires another statewide vote.
In 2019, Colorado voters legalized sports gambling with a 10 percent tax on casinos’ sports betting proceeds, not to exceed $29 million a year. The tax collections cover the state’s cost to regulate sports gambling and provide addiction programs, with the balance directed to the Colorado Water Conservation Board for various water projects.
But lawmakers didn’t anticipate that Coloradans would love to bet on sports this much. During the height of football season in Dec. 2023, there were $716 million in total sports wagers, a 38 percent increase over Dec. 2022. A state analysis forecasts tax collections to exceed $36 million in about two years, well beyond the $29 million cap in current law. If the cap is not lifted by voters the state will return excess tax collections to sportsbook operators.
Here’s the language you’ll see on your ballot:
Without raising taxes, may the state keep and spend all sports betting tax revenue above voter-approved limits to fund water conservation and protection projects instead of refunding revenue to casinos?
How would Proposition JJ work?
If voters approve the measure, the state will be allowed to keep all tax revenue from sports gambling beyond the current limit of $29 million a year. All excess tax collections will be directed to water conservation projects.
The state’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, TABOR, is a constitutional amendment that restricts the growth of government by forcing the state to return excess tax revenue back to taxpayers, unless voters say otherwise. Proposition JJ would exempt the sports gambling revenue from TABOR limits, allowing the state to keep the money.
Who’s for Proposition JJ?
The measure has wide, bipartisan support, and sailed through the state legislature on its way to the statewide ballot. Environmental groups, the agricultural industry and local governments support keeping the excess sports gambling tax revenue for water projects. Groups backing the measure include Colorado Water Congress, Colorado Municipal League, Environmental Defense Fund, and Colorado Cattlemen's Association.
The Speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, Julie McCluskie (D-Dillon), sponsored the bill.
“Water is more than just our day-to-day necessity for survival, it’s what drives economies,” said McCluskie in an interview. “Water embodies or captures the spirit of the West, what it means to be a part of Colorado … and now we have a chance to ensure that these dollars will continue to fund critically necessary water projects in the state instead of returning dollars to casinos and sports betting agencies.”
Some projects that have already received funding from sports gambling taxes include providing technical assistance to cities for sustainable water management and employing young adults to visit low-income households to offer replacements for things like inefficient water fixtures.
The campaign committee set up to support passage of Proposition JJ has $490,000 in contributions, with the largest share ($280,000) covered by the Environmental Defense Action Fund.
Who’s against Proposition JJ?
There is no organized opposition. But when the ballot question was in front of the state legislature, State Sen. Kevin Priola (D-Henderson) voted against it. In an interview recently, Priola said that he was concerned about the proliferation of sports gaming in Colorado
“In my opinion the pendulum has swung so far where I've had family members struggling with addiction to betting,” said Priola, who also objected to where the excess money would be spent. “It doesn't make an effort to help increase education as it relates to gambling addiction.”
