Will He or Won’t He: Christie Vetoes Sports Betting Bill

As has been the case with similar gambling legislation, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie tends to wait until the very last minute to make his final decision: Sign or veto.

This time he didn't wait until the last minute.

Chrisie had until Monday to sign a controversial piece of legislation that would bring sports betting to the Garden State and its various casinos in Atlantic City as well as racetracks.  By Friday afternoon, Christie had pulled out his veto pen.

The move could have proven lucrative, however, all four of the professional sports leages and the NCAA have opposed legalizing the activity in New Jersey.

“New Jersey has a right to have what Las Vegas has," state Senator Raymond Lesniak had argued, referring to Nevada's legalized sports betting industry.  Lesniak sponsored the legislation that Christie ultimately vetoed.

“New Jersey has a right to have what Las Vegas has," state Senator Raymond Lesniak had argued, referring to Nevada's legalized sports betting industry.  Lesniak sponsored the legislation that Christie ultimately vetoed.

The New Jersey Governor called the pending legislation “a novel attempt to circumvent the Third Circuit court’s ruling’’ that federal law prevented implementation of New Jersey’s 2012 law authorizing sports wagering.
“Ignoring federal law, rather than working to reform federal standards, is counter to our democratic traditions and inconsistent with the Constitutional values I have sworn to defend and protect,’’ he said.

The federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) bans sports betting in all but four states-   Nevada, Delaware, Montana and Oregon - that received exemptions prior to that law's passage in 1992.

Federal judges have sided with the major sports leagues and, in June, the US Supreme Court permitted the ban to remain in place but with one caveat. 

Lesniak believes that New Jersey casinos and racetracks should be able to offer sports betting provided the state itself does not offer sponsorship in the operations.

It’s “an unprecedented move,” said Christopher Soriano, an attorney and chairman of the Casino Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association, in an interview with the Press of Atlantic City. “No other state has ever tried this,” he said.

- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com