House rejects ballot measure to expand sports betting, 90-24

Members of the North Dakota House of Representatives on Wednesday voted 90 to 24 to reject House Concurrent Resolution 3002, a proposed amendment to Section 25 of Article XI of the state constitution that would have authorized professional and collegiate sports betting and directed its tax revenue to K‑12 education. The judiciary committee recommended a do‑not‑pass on the measure.

The vote followed an extended floor debate in which committee members and other representatives cited testimony and studies linking expanded sports betting to household financial harm, increased gambling problems among college‑aged people, and harassment of student athletes. Representative Adam Satra, presenting the judiciary committee’s recommendation, summarized testimony that included an online‑gambling study he said showed a 25–30% increase in household bankruptcy risk and a University at Buffalo finding that about one in 10 college students meet criteria for problem or pathological gambling.

Sponsor Representative Scott Lausser said the measure would place the question before voters in the November 2026 general election and stressed the amendment would cover only professional and collegiate sports, not high school athletics. “This measure gives permissive language to the legislature that may implement rules, regulation, taxation,” Lausser said, adding the legislature would decide how any revenue would be spent if the amendment passed.

Opponents raised concerns about addiction, harms to families and charities, and threats to student athletes tied to so‑called prop bets. Representative Ben Clement warned that fans at events could end up using phones to place repeated bets during games, reducing charitable gaming revenue and increasing harassment of athletes and officials. Representative Dan Brown, a tribal member and member of the state’s problem gambler advisory board, cited state treatment statistics and said electronic and online wagering (ETABs) represented a growing share of problematic gambling.

Some proponents framed the vote as allowing voters to decide. Representative Steaman said the proposal “is about allowing the citizens of North Dakota to have a say.” Representative Lausser told colleagues that placing the proposal on the ballot would let constituents decide whether to legalize online sports betting.

The judiciary committee had reported out a do‑not‑pass recommendation by a 13–1 vote. After floor debate the clerk recorded a final tally of 24 yeas and 90 nays, and the resolution was declared failed.

Why it matters: The resolution would have required a constitutional amendment and, if adopted, would have altered how the state treats online sports wagering while routing any tax revenue to K‑12 funding. Lawmakers disagreed over predicted fiscal benefits and potential social costs, particularly for college students and athletes.

Votes and next steps: Because the resolution failed on final passage in the House, it will not proceed to the ballot. Sponsors had said the measure would have been placed on the November 2026 ballot if approved by the legislature.