HB 347, a bill to legalize mobile sports betting in North Carolina, passed through the Senate Committee on Commerce and Insurance on Wednesday. The bill cleared the House at the end of March before sitting untouched throughout April.
The bill is next scheduled to be discussed by the Senate Finance Committee, where a hearing date has yet to be announced.'
HB 347 doesn't look the same as it did when it passed in the House, as it underwent a series of significant changes on Wednesday. Spearheaded by Sen. Jim Perry, among the most notable amendments to the bill is the inclusion of parimutuel betting on horse racing, which wasn’t in the House version. Applicants can obtain an advance-deposit wagering (ADW) license, and each licensee would fork over 1% of their annual parimutuel wagering handle to the state’s lottery commission.
On the sports betting side, the new version of the bill includes a mobile sports betting tax rate of 18%, which is a jump from the 14% tax rate approved by the House.'