Mississippi

Mobile sports betting bill moves to the Mississippi House floor

Published

2 years ago

January 30, 2024

Mobile sports betting bill moves to the Mississippi House floor

The Gaming Committee of the Mississippi House of Representatives held a hearing to consider House Bill 774, which will make online mobile sports betting legal outside the walls of casinos in the state if it’s signed by the governor.
Photo by Jeremy Pittari | Magnolia Tribune

House Gaming Chairman Rep. Eure says the proposed legislation ensures the brick and mortar casinos as well as state and local governments are considered as the mobile betting market develops.

Online sports betting may be legal outside the walls of a Mississippi casino if House Bill 774 gains traction in the Legislature.

On Tuesday, the House Gaming Committee took up the bill in a hearing that saw it move to the next step.

Currently, betting on an athletic event or online sports pool through a mobile platform while not standing in a casino is considered illegal. HB 774 aims to do is bring those illegal bets under the umbrella of existing casinos.

If the bill becomes law, local governments will collect an additional 4 percent tax on winnings, while the state will collect 8 percent. Those figures are over and above existing gambling tax structures, said Gaming Committee Chair State Rep. Casey Eure (R).

Each casino can only partner with one platform but are free to chose the platform. Eure said the casino also has the option to develop their own platform if they wish.

The aim of the bill is to protect the brick and motor casinos in the state, Eure stated.

Eure said this bill has been in the works for four years. The push to pass it started because Mississippi ranks first in illegal online betting in the United States.

In terms of revenue, Tennessee brings in $83.6 million in mobile sports betting tax revenue, while neighboring Louisiana brought in $40.4 million.

If this bill makes it to the Governor’s desk and is signed, Rep. Eure estimates an additional $25-$35 million will be collected in gambling taxes. That estimate could a bit conservative, the Coastal Mississippi Representative said, adding that he would not be surprised to see as much as $50 million.

The top six cities in Mississippi with instances of illegal mobile sports betting are Columbus, Greenwood, Meridian, Hattiesburg, Biloxi and Jackson. By legalizing the option, Eure said those figures will decrease. States that have legalized mobile sports betting have less instances of people going to an illegal betting site.

“If you go to a state that has legal mobile sports betting, it reverses,” Eure said. “So as you can see once you legalize mobile sports betting you do a way with a lot of the illegal market.”

Geospatial checks over a year that recorded visits to illegal gaming sites by users within Mississippi reported 9.3 million checks, a large number when compared to the state of Texas, which had 5 million checks.

“So as you can see, a lot of Mississippians are wanting to place mobile sports wagers,” Eure added.

By tying all online sports bets to an approved platform, underage betting will not be a factor, since, as Rep. Eure noted, there are several checks and balances in place.

Geofencing will be required as part of the bill to ensure any bets placed by people in the state are actually within its boundaries. If a Mississippian wants to bet while in another state that has legal online sports betting, they will pay that state’s taxes on any winnings. People who live in other states that are visiting Mississippi can place online sports bets so long as they are in the Magnolia State’s lines. Once they leave the state, they will no longer be able to place an online bet through a Mississippi platform.

A committee passed the bill out to the floor and could be considered as early as Wednesday by the full House.

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Mississippi

Stamps Super Burgers named best burger in Mississippi

Published

10 hours ago

April 6, 2026

Press Room

Stamps Super Burgers named best burger in Mississippi

A Jackson, Mississippi, icon has been named the best burger in Mississippi.

Foodie offers tips for “living a delicious life” from where you go out to eat to what you cook at home. It’s ranked the best hamburger restaurant in every state.

“Of course, the bigger burger chain names have become famous worldwide, but U.S. soil is also home to a dazzling variety of burger businesses, from those selling everything from high-end gastroburgers and gluten- or meat-free versions, to hole-in-the-wall places that have been slinging sliders for generations,” Scheenagh Harrington wrote for Foodie.

The site’s pick for the best in the Magnolia State is not surprising.

“Many businesses claim their product is the best in town, but Jackson-based Stamps Super Burgers really does deliver,” Harrington wrote.

They warned to plan your trip. Afternoons can get very busy.

Why do people love Stamps burgers?

Stamps Super Burgers, 1801 Dalton St., Jackson, was founded in 1986. Since then, three generations of the Stamps family have served juicy burgers and fresh-cut fries to the community.

Today, it’s co-owned by Phil Stamps Jr. In a previous interview with the Clarion Ledger, he said it “originally started with my grandmother and grandfather in 1970 when they purchased it from Canterbury Grocery, and the entire family operated that business as a grocery and meat market for a while before transitioning over to burgers in 1986.”

The kitchen is open, in the center of the restaurant. You can watch employees cut potatoes for fries or man the grill.

A signature Stamps hamburger comes with an 11-ounce beef patty and mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, tomato, pickle and onions. The menu also has wings and different burger options, like turkey or portobello.

The Washington Addition restaurant regularly tops “best of” rankings for the state. In 2024, it was on the USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year list.

Where are the best burgers in Jackson, MS?

Yelp lists the Top 10 burger joints in Jackson, based on user reviews.

Stamps Super Burgers
Foundation Burger
Fat Albert’s
Cs’s
Rooster’s Restaurant
Rowan’s
Bulldog Burger
The Pig & Pint
Brent’s Drugs
Not Just a Burger

Contributing: Kiara Fleming

Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with USA TODAY NETWORK. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com.

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Mississippi

An 1850s Parsonage in Natchez, Mississippi, Is Selling for the First Time in Over a Century

Published

22 hours ago

April 5, 2026

Press Room

An 1850s Parsonage in Natchez, Mississippi, Is Selling for the First Time in Over a Century

A 174-year-old brick parsonage house on a bluff above the Mississippi River is now for sale in Natchez, Mississippi, asking $1.985 million.

The home, completed in 1852, was built by architect James Hardie as a residence for Methodist ministers, according to historical records. The land was donated by Peter Little, a wealthy cotton broker and slave owner who built the city’s historic Rosalie mansion.

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The house was initially built as a one-story residence with an “English” basement and a carriage house; a two-story annex was added later, according to the listing with Douglas Adams of Crescent Sotheby’s International Realty, informed by the Historic Natchez Foundation.

“The location is what is superb because it is one of the highest points in Natchez overlooking the Mississippi River,” said Adams, who posted the listing Thursday.

In 1893, the Parsonage changed hands for the last time when it was purchased by James and Agnes Metcalfe, and has been in the Metcalfe family ever since.

Known as the Parsonage, the residence is considered a classic example of Greek Revival architecture from the pre-Civil War South, with a wide portico, raised porch and sash windows. It is located on South Broadway Street, in a commanding position that overlooks Bluff Park, the Mississippi and downtown Natchez. It spans 6,500 square feet with five bedrooms, two formal parlors flanking a central hall and richly detailed interiors that include original exposed-brick walls, fireplaces and stained-glass windows.

In addition to a front porch, the property includes several outdoor terraces and balconies, including a second-floor wraparound deck and a balustraded rooftop—which has the best vantage point from which to see the wide views.

The home was occupied for many years by the late Albert and Gay Metcalfe, who married at the Parsonage in 1959, and would host events for friends. “It became something of a social hub,” Adams said. “They’d host families to celebrate someone’s life; there may have been some weddings that occurred there.”

Gay Metcalfe died in 2023 and the heirs are her three children, Adams said. The family couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Hardie, the architect, was a Scottish immigrant who built several other notable buildings in Natchez, including most prominently St. Mary Basilica, a Gothic Revival structure on the National Register of Historic Places, and the Homewood plantation, a Greek Revival mansion.

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According to local lore, the Parsonage was commissioned by Little because his wife, Eliza’s religious devotion led her to welcome every passing minister into their home, according to “Natchez,” a 1940s history of the city. Displeased with the “long siege of such guests,” Little decided to build a separate home for his wife’s visitors.

Little’s own mansion at Rosalie still stands today near the site of the 1729 massacre of the Natchez Native Americans, from whom the city takes its name.

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