Georgia's hopes for legal sports betting in 2023 officially ended late last week. Despite numerous bills being proposed during the 2023 legislative session, none of them successfully passed into the opposite chamber.'
State legislators failed to come to an agreement on an acceptable way to bring sports wagering to Georgia, as debates about the need for a constitutional amendment proved to be a new sticking point. For several years, roadblocks – often unrelated to sports betting – have popped up and decimated legalization hopes.'
Will past barriers to legalization come to light again in 2024, or is the future outlook for Georgia brighter?
Politics doomed 2021 effort
Georgia lawmakers made significant progress to legalize sports betting in 2021. SB 142, which attempted to legalize the activity through a constitutional amendment, passed through the Senate. There was optimism the bill – and separate effort HB 86 – would have support in the House, but an unrelated political disagreement halted those efforts.