Wyoming Latest State Mulling Online Sports Betting Tax Hike
Posted on: June 16, 2025, 09:21h.
Last updated on: June 16, 2025, 10:01h.
- Wyoming lawmakers are considering raising the tax on online sportsbooks
- Online sportsbooks currently direct 10% of their revenue to the state
- Wyoming is the latest state to review an online sports betting tax increase
Wyoming lawmakers are following a nationwide trend of considering increases to sports betting taxes.
Legal sports betting occurs in the Cowboy State by way of commercial online sportsbooks and in-person at tribal casinos. Wyoming’s mobile sports betting platforms are subject to a 10% state tax on their gross win, or money kept after winning bets are paid out.
That levy could soon increase after the Legislature’s Select Committee on Capital Financing and Investments heard recently from the Legislative Service Office that Wyoming’s 10% tax is almost half the national average. Karen Vaughn, a fiscal analyst within the Legislature’s nonpartisan advisory office, told the Select Committee that the average tax rate among states with legal online sports betting is around 19%.
Wyoming’s low tax, however, made the market attractive for sportsbooks to pony up the $100K licensing fee for five years (renewals are $50K for each additional five-year period). With Wyoming home to less than 600K people, last among the 50 states, a low tax, sportsbooks said, was needed to warrant interest in operating in the state.
State Tax Hike Considered
Despite its small population and rather spotty cell phone/internet service, Wyoming is home to a competitive online sports betting market with five operators — FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, and Fanatics. The rebranded Barstool Sportsbook — ESPN Bet — has received approval from the Wyoming Gaming Commission but hasn’t yet launched.
After learning that Wyoming is possibly leaving state tax money on the table, or, with the books, Rep. Liz Storer (D-Jackson) motioned to author a bill to raise the state’s online sports betting tax. Storer said she would initially include an increase to 20%, though members of the Select Committee told the public that would only be a starting point.
Any legislative change to the effective online sports betting tax would not impact the 10% tax on tribal casino sports betting revenue, which is governed through Class III gaming compacts between the Native American communities and Gov. Mark Gordon (R).
Wyoming’s commercial online sportsbooks will likely push back on any tax increase. Wyoming is among the smallest sports betting states in terms of revenue, with annual winnings for oddsmakers less than $20 million.
By comparison, oddsmakers in New York generated more than $2 billion in net win last year.
State Tax Hikes
Wyoming’s sports betting tax hike consideration comes after lawmakers in Illinois raised their effective tax on online books twice in the past two years. Leading sportsbooks DraftKings and FanDuel responded to the most recent tax hike by implementing 50-cent surcharges on each bet made.
New Jersey legislators are considering raising the state’s 13% effective tax on online sportsbooks’ winnings, as neighboring New York’s online sports betting market continues thriving despite a 51% tax, among the highest in the nation.
Earlier this month, the Louisiana State Legislature forwarded Gov. Jeff Landry (R) legislation to increase the online sports betting tax from 15% to 21.5%. Landry is expected to sign the measure.
Sportsbooks say higher taxes further put their legal operations at a competitive disadvantage to offshore sportsbooks, which don’t pay any form of tax and therefore often offer better odds and more promotions and incentives.
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