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State of Play’s TL;DR
- New Mexico may be years away from online sports betting, but the debate is heating up now.
- A state lawmaker is urging tribes to revisit the issue, arguing regulated mobile wagering could help capture tax revenue as prediction markets draw increased scrutiny.
Rep. John Block, a Republican from Alamogordo, is calling on New Mexico’s tribes to reconsider whether the state should allow online sports betting.
Right now, New Mexico permits only in-person sports wagers on tribal land, as tribes control gambling in the state.
Block said a legal online market could bring in more revenue.
“It would be really nice, at least, to get some more revenue for people. … If people are already here operating in the state illegally online, then that robs you, it robs us, it robs every single New Mexican of that tax revenue.”
A complicated change
The backdrop is New Mexico’s recent enforcement action against prediction market operator Kalshi. Attorney General Raul Torrez filed a lawsuit against Kalshi in June, alleging the company violated New Mexico laws.
Block’s argument is that if consumers are already finding online wagering options, the state and tribes should at least revisit whether a regulated sports betting model makes sense.
Any change, however, would be complicated. The current tribal-state compact would need to be reopened, and that would require approval from the tribes, the New Mexico governor, the Legislature, and the US Secretary of the Interior.
The compact is set to run through 2037.
New Mexico’s setup shows why online sports betting expansion is not always a simple legislative switch. In some states, the key question is tax rate or licensing. In New Mexico, the central issue is tribal control and whether compact terms can be renegotiated.
New Mexico is also part of a growing clash between state-regulated wagering systems and prediction markets that states say sit outside their jurisdiction.
Based on reporting by Dan Angell for The Lines.
