• The North Carolina Lottery Commission met today and approved the formation of a new sports betting committee
• The committee will handle sports betting issues that do not fit into other committees, according to NCLC Chair Ripley Rand
• Sports betting in the state must be launched no later than June 14, 2024

The North Carolina Lottery Commission today took steps to ensure the implementation of North Carolina sports betting moves smoothly in the next several months.

The commission unanimously approved the formation of the North Carolina Sports Betting Committee to oversee the commission’s role in the state’s sports betting launch, implementation, and regulatory process.

North Carolina Lottery Commission Chair Ripley Rand, Commissioner Cari Boyce, and Commissioner Pam Whitaker will sit on the committee.

North Carolina Sports Betting Regulatory Process Just Beginning

The sports betting committee will begin meeting soon to kickstart the state’s regulatory process and ensure North Carolina sports betting launches by June 14, 2024.

Sterl Carpenter, Deputy Executive Director of Gaming Compliance and Sports Betting, updated the commission that four respondents submitted a bid to an RFP to design a web portal for sports betting applicants to automatically submit licensing applications. However, Carpenter noted that none of the bidders provided the necessary value for the state to be awarded the project.

When the commission begins accepting licensing applications, Carpenter said the commission staff will review the applications manually if an online portal has yet to be launched.

“We will get sports betting and pari-mutuel betting up and running before the June deadline,” Carpenter said.

To help streamline the entire process, the commission noted that it will schedule two special meetings prior to December dedicated entirely to sports betting matters. Rand said the dates have not been approved yet, but one meeting will be held in late October and the second will be held in late November.

Unknowns Moving Forward in Process

There are unknowns moving forward in the sports betting process, Hayden Bauguess, Director of Governmental Affairs, told the commission. He pointed to the modifications of the sports betting bill in the proposed state budget, which is likely to be approved next week.

The new wording included in the proposed budget strikes the maximum amount of online sports betting licenses from the budget and clarifies that the Lottery Commission “shall only license interactive sports wagering operators who have a written designation agreement” with a professional sports franchise, owner of a sports facility, motor sports facility, NASCAR track, or PGA Tour course in the state.

It’s unclear in this version of the budget if the allowable licenses in the state will remain at 12. The brick-and-mortar sportsbooks will remain in the budget, but the operators partnered with their respective facilities are expected to run the retail sportsbook as well.

Bauguess noted that the staff is working to finding out what these changes will mean to the commission and how it will affect the licensing process.

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