Illinois
Top sportsbooks go to customers in fight against Illinois tax hike proposal
CHICAGO (CBS) — A battle has been brewing over sports betting in Illinois.
On one side, Gov. JB Pritzker is trying to more than double taxes on winning bets. On the other, the betting companies are now asking their customers to get involved to stop it.
Companies like DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM have all come together to form the Sports Betting Alliance. The competitors are united against Pritzker’s proposed tax hike – which he estimates would generate an additional $200 million for the state.
Sports betting, of course, has been booming in popularity since it was legalized with the passage of the Illinois Sports Wagering Act in 2019 and the first legal wager was placed the following year. Abbey Sowacke and Charles Cook each consider themselves casual online s[sports betters.
“It makes games a little more exciting,” Cook said.
CBS 2 met Sowacke and Cook outside the DraftKings sports book at Wrigley Field. They were likely among online bettors who have received messages like from sports betting companies, urging them to write Illinois lawmakers and oppose the governor’s proposed tax increase.
Right now, Illinois sports books pay 15% tax on their revenue. But Pritzker’s latest budget proposal would spike the tax to 35%.
“The truth lies somewhere in the middle,” said sports betting regulatory reporter Robert Linnehan, of Sports Betting Dime. “The operators are obviously not happy with the proposal.”
Sports betting companies said if approved, higher taxes would mean worse odds, and fewer promotions for users – which they warn could fuel the illegal market. The companies also warn the tax hike may drive all but the top three sportsbooks out of Illinois.
“This is going to affect the way that you bet,” said Linnehan. “People want more, states want more, and I think Illinois sees they could be making a heck of a lot more – and they’re going to take a really hard look at this.”
Pritzker press secretary Alex Gough said in part in a statement: “By raising the wagering tax to 35%, Illinois would still be a far cry from the highest rates in the country, with New York, for example hovering around 50%.”
Sowacke did not like the idea of a tax hike.
“I just think that’s insane,” she said. “You’re adding more tax to it? It’s ridiculous.”
The Sports Betting Alliance suggests Illinois should legalize online gaming, or iGaming, to generate more money. Right now, Illinois has a bill on the books, but has not gained much momentum.
iGaming is currently legal only in a handful of states.
Illinois
Evansville’s Ben Humrichous commits to Illinois
Illinois needs some size in the worst way, and it picked up a big frontcourt presence.
Evansville’s Ben Humrichous (pronounced Hum-Rick-House) committed to the Illini with one year of eligibility remaining, according to an Instagram post Tuesday night.
The 6-foot-9 forward began his collegiate career at Huntington University (NAIA) in Indiana before transferring to Evansville last season. He’s a native of Tipton, Ind., just north of Indianapolis.
Take a look at some highlights below:
Humrichous averaged 14.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season for the Purple Aces, finishing 42% from three (on 82 attempts, so not a small sample size). He scored a season-high 29 points in a game against Chattanooga.
Not a high-major prospect, but definitely some upside there, especially once Fletch and Orlando Antigua get a look at him.
Illinois
Countdown to cicadas in Illinois
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Illinois
New report lists 5 Illinois cities among worst to get high in across the US
Illinois is dominating a new report about the best places to blaze it up across the country – but not how you might think.
Recreational cannabis was legalized for adult use in different states in 2023 and to catalog the growth of cannabis tourism, LawnStarter’s latest report ranks the Best Cities to Get Stoned in 2024.
They also prepared a list for the worst cities to get stoned in the U.S., where Illinois captured half the spots.
The online platform that allows to reserve lawn care and mowing services through its website doubles online as a dataset collector, compiling data collected by the company to create studies covering anything from vacation rentals to hiking cities.
Here’s a breakdown of the report.
How did Illinois do?
According to the report, five cities out of ten are from Illinois for the worst cities to get high in, with Cicero the third worst city in the country.
The other Illinois cities that cracked the list include Elgin (5th worst), Bloomington (7th worst), Springfield (9th worst) and Rockford (10th worst).
Chicago was the highest ranked city in Illinois to get high in, according to the report, at No. 38.
More: New report finds air quality in Springfield, surrounding areas is getting worse
Methodology used
According to LawnStarter, the metrics to rank each city were first determined as six categories: access, consumer satisfaction, convenience, lounging, entertainment and munchie relief.
After the six categories were chosen, each was assigned a weight based on importance for the stoned experience. Access to dispensaries was weighted highest on the list, with munchies relief weighing the least.
Data was collected from 292 cities across the country before final calculations scored each city out of 100 points to determine its rank in each factor and overall. The score is the average of the city’s scores combined.
Best places to get high?
Here’s a look at the best places, according to the report:
- Los Angeles, California
- San Francisco, California
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Denver, Colorado
- New York, New York
Claire Grant writes about business, growth and development and other news topics for the State Journal-Register. She can be reached at CLGrant@gannett.com; and on X (Formerly known as Twitter): @Claire_Granted
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