The state of Florida currently has a 25-year compact agreement with federally recognized Indian tribes concerning in-person casino gambling and sports betting. However, current President Donald Trump has expressed interest in a new commercial casino bearing his name in the Sunshine State.
Recently, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis proposed an overhaul to the state’s ballot initiative. The proposal seeks to make citizen-led constitutional amendments essentially unobtainable by requiring ballot signatures to only be gathered at voting precincts. Any other form of ballot harvesting in the state would be considered illegal.
A 2018 Florida constitutional amendment requires that voters approve any gambling expansion efforts. Daniel Wallach, a gaming law expert, said the new ballot initiative proposal would “seal off competition for sports betting and casino gambling.”
In 2024, DeSantis successfully curved two ballot submissions, one for recreational marijuana and one for abortion rights, by throwing his conservative support against the proposed ballots. It also helped that Florida has a super majority enacted that requires citizen-led constitutional amendments to receive more than 60% of the vote before they can become law.
Florida Casinos
As stated above, Florida has a legal agreement with two Native American tribes that allows them to operate casinos and sportsbooks solely in the state. The Seminole Tribe of Florida currently owns and operates six local casinos, and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida has one casino location in Miami.
FL Indian casinos have operated in the state since 1979 when the Seminole Tribe of Florida opened the first high-stakes bingo hall and casino in Hollywood. Since then, class III gaming options have been added, including blackjack, video poker, slots, roulette, and more.
Are Online Casinos Legal In Florida?
Currently, there are no state or federal gambling laws that make online casino gambling in the state of Florida illegal. However, new legislation is in the works that could make online gambling a recent pastime.
Senate Bill 1404 and House Bill 953 propose several amendments to existing statutes, including imposing stricter criminal penalties on unregulated gaming operations and expanding the authority of the Florida Gaming Control Commission.
The Senate bill seeks to redefine “Internet gambling” and explicitly prohibit internet gambling in the state from sites not licensed in the state. While the newly drafted legislation would not affect the Seminole Tribes’ mobile sportsbook, it will make it harder for state residents to access offshore gambling sites.