A new year signifies a renewed struggle in Alabama to abolish the state's enduring prohibition on the majority of gambling types.
The Alabama Legislature will start its 2025 session in one week on Tuesday, Feb. 4, continuing until May 15. Alabama does not allow bills to carry over, which means that any unsuccessful efforts from the 2024 session to broaden gaming in the Cotton State must be reintroduced.
During the last session, a gaming package approved by a special conference committee fell one vote short of the three-fifths majority required in the Senate. The agreement had previously been approved by the House of Representatives.
The legislation would have permitted a state-operated lottery, electronic gaming devices at parimutuel venues, and allowed the Poarch Band of Creek Indians to move from Class II to Class III gaming, which includes Las Vegas-style slot machines and live dealer table games. The tribe’s existing Wind Creek Casinos solely provide electronic bingo-style games.
Only a week before the political activity starts in Montgomery, lobbyists and trade organizations are launching advertisements on commercial and social media platforms, aiming to persuade the public to inform their state representatives and senators that they desire legalized gaming.
Alabama Lottery, Sports Wagering
The Sports Betting Alliance is backed by leading sports betting companies FanDuel and DraftKings. The organization also includes BetMGM and Fanatics Sportsbook as its two other members. The advocacy groups inform state legislators of their stance that an open and legal sports betting industry safeguards consumers, eliminates underground and offshore markets, and produces additional tax income.
In Alabama, the SBA estimates that online sports betting could produce between $65 million and $90 million in additional yearly tax revenue for the state. The SBA is funding social media advertisements in Alabama that promote the potential advantages of a legal sports betting landscape. Although the SBA supports iGaming, the 2025 coalition is concentrating on sports betting in Alabama.
The Petroleum & Convenience Marketers of Alabama, an organization that supports advantageous business environments for its members, is urging Alabama legislators to finally approve a lottery bill. It’s a type of gaming growth that Gov. Kay Ivey (R) has pursued for many years.
The trade association representing over 350 petroleum firms and convenience store operators in Alabama supports a campaign named “Give Alabama A Voice.” The committee aims to persuade legislators to enact a law facilitating a statewide referendum in November to change the Alabama Constitution to authorize a lottery.
"We’ve never been closer,” the campaign claims. “We have the momentum to vote on an Alabama lottery, giving you the chance to participate in billions of dollars in lottery winnings. Plus, Alabama gets to keep its share of the lottery revenue we are currently giving away to other surrounding states.”
Alabama is one of just five states that lacks a lottery.
Conservative Gaming Resistance
Alabama is situated firmly in the so-called Bible Belt, where Republicans have maintained a political trifecta by controlling the governor's office and both legislative chambers since 2011.
The Alabama Policy Institute (API), a prominent conservative think tank that has consistently resisted attempts to introduce gambling in Alabama, has recently unveiled a website aimed at opposing the 2025 bills on casinos, lotteries, and sports betting.
“Legalizing casino-style gambling in the state and establishing a statewide lottery is bad public policy, both fiscally and socially, and it is the wrong solution to address the state’s unsustainable fiscal trajectory,” the API’s www.bettinghurtsbama.com website reads.
"Regardless of who plays the lottery or gambles, the government receives a portion of every dollar spent on these activities. This creates a perverse incentive for the state. The state becomes addicted to these regressive funding streams, with politicians desiring for more and more individuals and families to recklessly spend their money gambling,” the website opines.
The promotion also indicates that the increase in gambling necessitates an enhancement of government infrastructure, which many conservatives resist.