House File 144 - Reprinted HOUSE FILE 144 BY COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 80) (As Amended and Passed by the House January 30, 2025 ) A BILL FOR An Act concerning the licensing and regulation of gambling 1 games, including a moratorium on the issuance of new 2 licenses, and including effective date and retroactive 3 applicability provisions. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 5 HF 144 (2) 91 ll/ns/md
H.F. 144 Section 1. Section 99F.4, subsection 24, Code 2025, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 24. a. To conduct a socioeconomic study on the impact of 3 gambling on Iowans, every eight years beginning in calendar 4 year 2013, and issue a report on that study. The commission 5 shall ensure that the results of each study are readily 6 accessible to the public. 7 b. The report on the study must include all of the 8 following: 9 (1) Information on the financial and societal impact of 10 gambling. 11 (2) An analysis of problem gambling and treatment programs. 12 (3) An evaluation of existing excursion gambling boats, 13 gambling structures, and pari-mutuel racetracks located in 14 rural areas or near the state border, if a new license is 15 awarded. 16 (4) A comprehensive assessment of potential gambling market 17 conditions. 18 (5) An evaluation of the effects on the gambling market from 19 competitive gambling locations located within sixty miles of 20 the state. 21 (6) An evaluation of the effects on attracting out-of-state 22 tourists to existing excursion gambling boats, gambling 23 structures, and pari-mutuel racetracks located near the state 24 border. 25 (7) An evaluation of the effects on existing qualified 26 sponsoring organizations and potential reductions in annual 27 distributions made by the sponsoring organization, if a new 28 license is awarded. 29 (8) The percentage ownership of existing gambling boats, 30 gambling structures, and pari-mutuel racetracks by residents of 31 this state versus any applicant. 32 (9) A comprehensive study of new potential adjusted gross 33 receipts after awarding a new license and the level of gambling 34 saturation with a sixty-mile radius of any existing excursion 35 -1- HF 144 (2) 91 ll/ns/md 1/ 4
H.F. 144 gambling boat, gambling structure, or racetrack enclosure. 1 (10) Criminal statistics near existing excursion gambling 2 boats, gambling structures, or racetrack enclosures, and near 3 any potential locations of an excursion gambling boat, gambling 4 structure, or racetrack enclosure. 5 (11) An analysis of the impact on community services, 6 including public safety expenditures, fire protection, 7 infrastructure improvements, and other capital project 8 expenditures in counties. 9 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 99F.5A Limitations on issuance of 10 licenses to conduct gambling games. 11 1. a. Commencing January 1, 2025, through June 30, 2030, 12 the total number of licenses issued by the commission to 13 conduct gambling games on an excursion gambling boat, at a 14 gambling structure, or at a pari-mutuel racetrack shall not 15 exceed nineteen subject to the requirements of this subsection. 16 b. Licenses to conduct gambling games shall be restricted 17 to those counties where an excursion gambling boat, gambling 18 structure, or racetrack enclosure was operating and licensed to 19 conduct gambling games on January 1, 2025. 20 c. The commission shall be authorized to take any of the 21 following actions concerning the issuance of licenses to 22 conduct gambling games: 23 (1) A gambling games licensee may move to a new location 24 within the same county and retain the gambling games license. 25 (2) A licensed facility may be sold and a new gambling games 26 license issued for operation in the same county. 27 (3) If a license to conduct gambling games is surrendered, 28 not renewed, or revoked, a new gambling games license may be 29 issued for operation in the same county. 30 2. On or after July 1, 2030, the commission shall not 31 issue a new license until after the commission has issued the 32 required report on the socioeconomic study on the impact of 33 gambling on Iowans due for calendar year 2029 in accordance 34 with section 99F.4, subsection 24. 35 -2- HF 144 (2) 91 ll/ns/md 2/ 4
H.F. 144 3. This section is repealed July 1, 2031. 1 Sec. 3. Section 99F.6, subsection 5, Code 2025, is amended 2 to read as follows: 3 5. Before a license is granted, an operator of an excursion 4 gambling boat shall work with the economic development 5 authority to promote tourism throughout Iowa and encourage 6 tourism from other states . Tourism information from local 7 civic and private persons may be submitted for dissemination. 8 The commission shall not issue a new license for a new location 9 that would negatively impact an existing licensee located 10 in a county contiguous to the Iowa border or located in a 11 county that qualifies as a rural county. For purposes of this 12 subsection, rural county means a county with a population 13 of less than thirty thousand as determined by the most recent 14 population estimate produced by the United States bureau of 15 the census or the most recent decennial census released by the 16 United States bureau of the census. 17 Sec. 4. Section 99F.6, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 18 following new subsection: 19 NEW SUBSECTION . 10. a. The commission shall not issue a 20 new license to conduct gambling games if the commission finds 21 the approval of a new license would cause or do any of the 22 following: 23 (1) Negatively impact the adjusted gross receipts of an 24 existing excursion gambling boat, gambling structure, or 25 racetrack enclosure by more than ten percent. 26 (2) Negatively impact the annual distributions of an 27 existing qualified sponsoring organization. 28 b. If the commission does not issue a new license to conduct 29 gambling games in a county, another application shall not be 30 submitted for that county for eight years from the date of the 31 decision not to issue the license. 32 Sec. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act, being deemed of immediate 33 importance, takes effect upon enactment. 34 Sec. 6. RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY. This Act applies 35 -3- HF 144 (2) 91 ll/ns/md 3/ 4
H.F. 144 retroactively to January 1, 2025. 1 -4- HF 144 (2) 91 ll/ns/md 4/ 4