Online Gambling Legal In Texas
In contrast to other states that have either legalized online gaming or taken significant steps towards doing so, Texas has made no progress whatsoever towards legalizing any type of gaming in the state. There are little to no prospects at the current time for Texas to legalize online gaming. The gambling landscape is Texas is sparse, at least from a legal perspective, due to cultural factors inherent in Texas.
Currently, sports betting is not allowed in Texas. This includes mobile online and gambling. However, horse racing and parimutuels betting are legal in the state, and there are tracks throughout where gambling enthusiasts go to and place wagers. Currently, only social and charitable gambling is legal in Texas. In February 2019, HB1275 was filed by State Rep. Eddie Lucio the 3rd to authorize sports betting operations including mobile and online wagering. Specifically, it proposes that operators acquire a permit at $25,000 of which only 5 will be allocated. But Texas’ gambling laws aren’t by any means the strictest in the nation, and there are some forms of legal gambling that do take place. Texans may buy lottery tickets or place bets on horse. Texas: Not legal, but legislation proposed. A proposed bill would allow mobile and online wagering on pro and college sports, but it will require a referendum amending the state constitution to be.
Texas Sports Betting Q&A 2020
Will Texas legalize sports betting?
Where is the closest legal sports’ betting to Texas?
What are the Texas sports betting laws?
Does Texas allow Daily Fantasy Sports?
What are the taxes in Texas on gambling winnings?
Frequently Asked Questions
Will Texas legalize sports betting?Legislation to legalize sports betting is currently on the books, but without a concrete timetable. However, with five professional franchises in the Dallas area and another four in Houston, most feel it is a matter of time. With over 28 million residents, the sports betting market is huge.
Where is the closest legal sports’ betting to Texas?Texans in the western panhandle and in the eastern parts of the state can cross state lines into New Mexico and Arkansas respectfully. These are the two closest physical locations where a Texas resident can legally bet on sports games.
What are the Texas sports betting laws?Under the penal code of Texas, most gambling is illegal. Texas residents can gamble at Native American casinos in the state. Currently, there are ongoing legislative discussions to legalize sports betting, but to date, the law lists it as at least a misdemeanor crime.
Does Texas allow Daily Fantasy Sports?This question depends on who you ask. According to the Texas State Attorney General, DFS contests violate the state’s laws against gambling. There is a pending legal case involving DFS providers who are still accepting Texas residents for DFS contests.
What are the taxes in Texas on gambling winnings?Gambling outside the Native American casinos is illegal in Texas. Pinpointing the tax rate on any winnings is tough. The state doesn’t have an income tax, so to avoid potential tax evasion problems, the best solution is to apply the state’s so-called sin tax on such things as gambling.
What is Allowed and What Isn’t is 2020
Texas is one of the strictest states in the U.S. when it comes to betting laws. In fact, Texas Hold ‘Em is one of the most popular games in the country, but if you gambled on it in Texas, you could face a misdemeanor charge. Under the penal code, any form of gambling is illegal. Gambling is defined in the state law as any bet based on the notion of winning or losing something based purely on chance. Residents are restricted from betting roulette, blackjack, and poker, both at casinos and online, as long as they are in state property.
ContentsThis said, there are three casinos that operate in lands that are Native American territory inside, or just outside, the Texas border where Texas residents can go to gamble. Texas law does not apply to these lands, and therefore, casino gambling is allowed. Texas is very big, so these three casinos may be very far away from you if you live in the state. There is Naskila Gambling, located in eastern Texas in Livingston. About an hour north of Dallas is the WinStar World Casino and Resort located just over the Texas border in Oklahoma, where casino gambling is legal. The third location is in Eagle Pass in extreme southwest Texas at the Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino and Resort.
Sports Betting in Texas
Currently, sports betting is not allowed in Texas. This includes mobile online and gambling. However, horse racing and parimutuels betting are legal in the state, and there are tracks throughout where gambling enthusiasts go to and place wagers. Furthermore, DraftKings and FanDuel are allowed to operate in the state, and fantasy sports enthusiasts are allowed to use those websites to play daily fantasy sports games. However, while you are allowed to play daily fantasy sports, there hasn’t been a bill to regulate it yet. FanDuel has taken the more conservative road and has pulled out of Texas.
Is Betting on the Horizon in 2020?
Within the last six months, Rep. Eddie Lucio filed H 1275, legislation that would authorize and regulate sports betting operations, including mobile and online betting, in the state. The bill requires a referendum that would amend the state constitution. If passed, it would then need to be approved by voters in the November election. House Resolution 61 is also on the House floor, which would authorize betting on professional and collegiate sports. In order to be placed on the ballot for voters in November, two-thirds of both the Texas House and Senate must approve Lucio’s bill. While many consider it a long shot in the near future, if more states continue to pass legislation, Texas will eventually be pressured to pass betting legislation for the first time. In other words, as the nation goes, so will Texas.
Existing Gambling in Texas
While other neighboring states are starting to allow gaming outlets, Texas only has three casinos in the state. Commercial casinos are by law not permitted to operate in Texas. Most of the gaming in Texas is centered on the Texas State Lottery and limited horse racing venues. The three casinos in the state are Native American casinos. Two of these casinos have been the subject of protracted litigation in which the state successfully closed the casinos. These casinos restarted operations on their own after the National Indian Gaming Commission issued a legal opinion stating that these casinos were not illegal. The matter is back in court, where the state has again attempted to shutter the casinos. Texas has undertaken numerous efforts over the years to crack down on what it views to be illegal gambling. In addition, various types of poker rooms have been established where the operator charges players “rental fees” so as not to run afoul of restrictions against receiving money from a pot as an organizer of a game of chance.
The act of gambling is not per se illegal in itself in Texas. Residents of the state wager on DFS and through offshore casinos and no enforcement actions have been taken against them. There is nothing that prohibits these activities. Offering gambling as an operator, however, is illegal in Texas, and the restrictions are extensive. However, these restrictions are not necessarily clear, and they are inconsistently enforced. There is enough gray area in Texas gambling laws that creates some uncertainty for operators to devise new types of gaming that may not necessarily be illegal.
Currently, the black market for gambling in Texas is strong. In addition to the poker rooms, there are slots in Texas that operate either in spite of or with the tacit endorsement of law enforcement. One loophole that is exploited is that some slot machines pay non-cash prizes since the illegality is the payment of cash prizes. This loophole originated from the fact that legislators wanted to ensure that amusement machines that awarded prizes would not be considered illegal gambling.
Other slot machines simply operate behind closed doors. Some counties receive tax revenue from licensing slot machines that may or not be violating the law. The case of slots evidences both the vague nature of Texas laws and the amount of gambling that occurs, notwithstanding the prohibitions in the law.
Prospects for Gaming Expansion
In addition, there are no efforts underway in Texas that would legalize sports betting. Numerous pari mutual venues have expressed an interest in accepting sports wagers if they were to be legalized. Numerous gambling legalization bills have been introduced in the past, but they have never received a vote in the Texas Legislature. Instead, they have been sent to committee where the bills have died. Even in the event that the bills cleared the legislature, they would likely face a veto from the Texas Governor who maintains his opposition to gambling.
Even legislation that would have legalized and regulated daily fantasy sports in Texas never made it out committee and languished after it was introduced. DraftKings & FanDuel do not operate their daily fantasy product in Texas. At this point, Texans are left to hope that demographic changes in the state could ultimately change the political calculus in a way that would permit online and expanded gaming in the state because the current leadership is intractably opposed. Other neighboring states such as Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Louisiana have expanded gaming regardless of the political bent of those that control the levers of power in the states.
Notwithstanding, studies that show that expanded gaming can have a $1.7 billion impact on the Texas economy, political forces in the state vehemently oppose gaming. The black market in the state is already estimated at close to $2 billion. The bulk of the opposition to gambling is based on moral and religious objections to wagering. In addition to opposition based on moral grounds, some Texas opponents of gambling claim that expended wagering would lead to greater spending on social programs and regulation. Interestingly enough, the Texas Attorney General signed a legal brief supporting New Jersey in the case of Murphy v. NCAA, but his support should not be interpreted as an endorsement of gambling. Instead, he viewed the federal ban on sports wagering as an encroachment on state’s rights.
It is unlikely that legal gaming expansion will come to Texas anytime soon, and little can change that reality even though gambling is already occurring. Perhaps if the state receives evidence that Texas residents are traveling outside of the state to gamble, a movement would begin to expand gaming in Texas to keep revenues within the state. That, however, is doubtful to occur. As is, Texas is losing potential revenues as its residents are betting offshore and illegally within the state, and that revenue could be taxed. Control of the state government would need to change hands at this point in order for gambling to be expanded in any form in the state. The best possible outcome for gambling proponents at this point is that voters are able to decide the question of gaming expansion in a referendum.
Free Betting News & Bonus OffersFind Out When You Can Legally Bet in Your State- Bingo (1982), Horse racing (1987), Lottery (1991), Kickapoo Casino (1996)
- $1.2 billion
- $4.6 billion
- 18 for lottery and bingo, 21 for racing and Kickapoo Casino
- Texas does not have a statewide smoking ban
- Horse racing is the only form of legal online gambling
Texas casinos and gambling is not very common within its borders. The same cannot be said about its neighbors. Every state that borders Texas offers casinos. Oklahoma stacks casinos along its border with Texas. Lake Charles, Louisiana is just east of the Texas state line. There are also casinos just across the New Mexico border.
Texas has one tribal casino. It is located near the Mexico border on the Kickapoo reservation. The games available are slots, video poker, bingo, electronic table games, and live poker. The only forms of legalized gambling permitted off that reservation are a state lottery, charitable bingo and horse racing, which includes live and off-track betting.
Paying Gambling Taxes in Texas
OnlineUnitedStatesCasinos has gathered everything you need to know about paying taxes on your gambling winnings. Learn everything about reporting your gambling taxes straight from a Certified Public Accountant in our exclusive Gambling Taxes article.
Texas Casinos Map & Guide
- Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino
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Types of Online Texas Gambling Allowed
The only form of online gambling that is legal in Texas is off-track betting on horses. Apps like TVG, TwinSpires, and BetAmerica accept Texans.
Daily fantasy sports sites accept Texans. This goes against the public declaration by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxtonthat the games are illegal. The sites that defy this opinion and continue to operate in Texas in what appears to be an illegal market include DraftKings and FanDuel.
Types of Live Texas Gambling
- Slots: Yes
- Blackjack: Yes
- Poker: Yes
- Craps/Roulette: Yes
- Horses: Yes
- Lottery: Yes
There are a few forms of live gambling permitted in Texas. The Kickapoo tribe has a southern Texas casino. It is the only Texas casino in the state. Slots, video poker, electronic table games and live poker are spread. There are about 3,300 machines at the Lucky Eagle Casino on that reservation. There are no other Texas casinos currently operating within its borders. If the Texas gambling laws were to change, this might as well.
The Texas Lottery sells two types of lottery tickets. One is an instant game that involves scratch-off tickets. The other is lotto drawings. Texas is included in the multi-state drawings like Powerball and Mega Millions. It also has in-state drawings like Lotto Texas, Texas Two Step, Texas Triple Chance, All or Nothing, Pick3, Daily4, and Cash5.
Charities may spread bingo for fundraising purposes. These are very popular compared to most other states due to the lack of other Texas casinos and gambling options.
The racing industry also fares better in Texas than other locales. The lack of Texas casinos probably helps the tracks remain active. Live and off-track betting is available at horse and greyhound racing venues in Texas.
Texas Gambling Laws
There are strict Texas gambling laws. The only forms of legalized Texas gambling are ones specifically approved by voters in a constitutional referendum. The only forms of gambling voters have affirmed are charitable bingo, horse racing, and a state lottery. A gaming compact was created between the state and the Kickapoo tribe under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Slots, video poker, electronic table games and a poker room are approved. Table games are not allowed. The Kickapoo tribe has the only reservation recognized by the state for gaming purposes. They are the only Texas casino currently operating.
While Texas bans most forms of betting, its punishments are lenient compared to other states. All gambling crimes that are not handled on a federal level are only misdemeanors.
A bet is defined as “an agreement to win or lose something of value solely or partially by chance”. Daily fantasy sports are illegal in Texas, likely because of this definition. The sites claim to be bona fide contests of skill that fall outside of this definition. The state attorney general and most legal analysts that follow the industry find that to be a laughable position.
The minimum Texas gambling age for lottery players is 18 years old. Live racing and off-track betting has a minimum Texas gambling age of 21 years old. The Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino also is required to exclude anyone under 21. Bingo players must be 18 but state law permits minors to play if accompanied by an adult.
List of Texas Casinos and Racetracks
There is only one Texas casino and it is the Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino in Eagle Pass. There are six active racetracks in Texas that have live and off-track betting. Three offers horses while the other three are greyhound tracks.
| Casino | Size | Address | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino – Eagle Pass | 3,300 Slot Machines | 768 Lucky Eagle Dr. | www.luckyeagletexas.com |
| Racetrack | Type | Address | Website |
| Gulf Coast Racing – Corpus Christie | Greyhounds | 5302 Leopard St. | www.gulfcoastracetrack.com |
| Gulf Greyhound Park – La Marque | Greyhounds | 1000 FM 2004 | www.gulfgreyhound.com |
| Lone Star Park – Grand Prairie | Thoroughbred | 1000 Lone Star Pkwy | www.lonestarpark.com |
| Retama Park – Selma | Thoroughbred & Quarter Horse | 1 Retama Pkwy | www.retamapark.com |
| Sam Houston Race Park – Houston | Quarter Horse | 7575 N. Sam Houston Pkwy W. | www.shrp.com |
| Valley Race Park – Harlingen | Greyhounds | 2601 S. Ed Carey Dr. | www.valleyracepark.com |
In addition to the Texas casinos and tracks, there are thousands of lottery retailers in the state where bettors can buy instant game and lotto tickets. There are also more than 100 places to play bingo.
Texas Gambling History
Horse racing dates back to before Texas became a state. Old time bookmakers took bets without any oversight. The industry had its issues with legitimacy before the industry died off in the middle of the 20th Century. It returned in a regulated state in 1987 to keep bettors from traveling to neighboring states for action. Live horses and greyhounds may be used.
Racing was not the first time gambling was legalized in Texas. Voters approved charitable gambling in 1980. The first bingo license was issued in 1982.
Voters approved the Texas Lottery in November 1991. The first ticket was sold in May 1992.
Tribal Texas Casinos Enter the Picture
Texas casino gambling has an interesting past in Texas. The Kickapoo tribe is the only one permitted to hold a gaming pact with the state.
The Tigua tribe was the first to open a casino in Texas. That occurred in 1993. It was done without a gaming compact. Governor Richards refused to enter into one.
The Tigua tribe sued the state and lost in 1994. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the state could not be compelled to sign a gaming compact. The Tigua casino remained open without a gaming pact. The state sued in 1999 and prevailed to shut the casino down. The casino did not close until 2001 when the Tigua tribe lost its appeals.
Is Online Gambling Legal In Texas
The Tigua tribe tried again in 2008 to roll out cash games. It opened a slot parlor but was forced to shut down after enforcement action was brought by Texas officials.
The Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino opened in 1996. It is still open today as it holds a gaming pact.
The Alabama-Coushatta tribe opened a casino in 2001. It closed after the Tigua Indians lost its initial court battle.
Is Online Gambling Legal In Texas Today
State law considers any activity that involves partial chance with money on the line to be gambling. Many gaming lawyers assumed that these meant daily fantasy sports were illegal in the state. The companies that operate those contests did not agree and operated in the state. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton declared the games illegal in January 2016. The sites ignored his opinion as it did not include a demand to leave the market.
Online Betting Legal In Texas
Texas Casinos & Gambling FAQ
What is the minimum Texas gambling age?
Lottery and bingo players must be at least 18 years old. Racing and casino players must be at least 21.
A bingo patron under 18 is allowed to play for real money if accompanied by an adult.
Yes. There is three horse racing tracks in Texas.
Yes. There are three greyhound tracks in Texas.
Yes. All six tracks have race books. TVG, TwinSpires, and BetAmerica all have mobile racing apps available to Texans.
There is one. It is Kickapoo’s Lucky Eagle Casino in Eagle Pass.
Slots, video poker, live poker and electronic table games are spread at Lucky Eagle Casino.
Sunland Park Race Track and Casino is just across the border in New Mexico from El Paso.
There are dozens of casinos along the Oklahoma state line.
Online Gambling Is It Legal In Texas
Lake Charles, Louisiana is home to the closest casinos to Houston.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton declared daily fantasy sports illegal in January 2016. His opinion was ignored by most of the companies that provide the games.
FanDuel and DraftKings are the major daily fantasy sports sites still in the state.