Allen Godfrey, Executive Director of the Mississippi Gaming Commission spoke to the Rotary Club of North Jackson at the club’s December 10, 2019, meeting. The primary subject of his presentation was Sports betting in Mississippi although he covered the history and success of gaming in Mississippi. Gaming was authorized by the Mississippi legislature in 1990 with the first casinos (dockside) opening in August 1992. Currently, there are 35 casinos in the state with all but three of them supervised by the Mississippi Gaming Commission. Those three are tribal casinos that are supervised by the National Indian Gaming Commission.
Beginning in August 2018, Mississippi casinos were authorized to offer sports betting books by a U.S. Supreme Court decision. The first sports betting books in Mississippi casinos were opened in August 2018. Mr. Godfrey commented that Mississippi was fortunate in that the legislature passed legislation prior to 2018 that provided for management of sports betting if it ever became legal. This permitted a rapid start-up of the business following the Supreme Court decision
The Mississippi casino industry is a $2.2 billion industry that generates approximately $250 million in tax revenues for the State. In October 2019, legal sports wagering amounted to $5.4 million, which generated $986 thousand in taxable revenues for the casinos.
We thank Mr. Godfrey for his long term service to the citizens of the State of Mississippi, especially for his service to the Gaming Commission. He is shown in the following photo with Rotarian Jeff Adcock who introduced him.
