Faced with a nearly $14 billion state budget deficit this year, the Governor has announced support to authorize mobile sports wagering as part of the 2021 State of the State. This follows a proposal from Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara, long-standing member of the Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering, advocating for the state to legalize mobile sports betting in the upcoming session as part of a revenue solution to address this year’s budget gap. In a statement on December 23, 2020 he said, “The longer we wait on this, the more we lose out on a market that’s generating significant revenue in other states and could be part of the solution to address this year’s budget gap.”

“It is encouraging to hear that the Governor has changed course from years past to support mobile sports betting in this year’s State of the State Address,” Assemblyman Santabarbara. “Last year, sports betting finally came out of the shadows to operate in a safe, regulated market in several casinos across New York, including Rivers Casino here in Schenectady. With businesses operating under socially distancing guidelines, health and safety restrictions and doing all or some of their business virtually and online, mobile sports betting now gives us another opportunity to boost our economy and create new jobs here in New York,” Santabarbara said. “The additional revenue to the state would be coming at a time when more funding is needed to support our schools and provide much-needed aid to our local communities, making it a win-win.”