Arizona could become the first state to legalize tribal sports gambling under a newly introduced bill that would also permit electronic sports betting kiosks off reservations in places like bars, clubs and stadiums.The bill, introduced Wednesday by three Republican state lawmakers, would allow each federally recognized tribe with a state gaming compact to run a sports betting operation.
Under the proposed legislation, bars that only allow patrons over 21 inside could lease "kiosks or similar machines" from a tribe. Private clubs like Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion could also have kiosks.
Existing law caps the number of betting machines each tribe can operate, and the bill does not grant tribes additional machines.
"This is a great way for the state to get more revenue," said Republican state Senator Sonny Borrelli of Lake Havasu, one of the bill's sponsors.
