Omaha, Nebraska: Voters Reject Online Sports Betting in Initiatives 440 and 441

Nebraska voters rejected online sports betting on Tuesday, defeating both ballot measures that would have let people place wagers on their phones through licensed operators. With more than 95 percent of the vote counted, Initiative 440 fell by 55 percent to 45 percent and Initiative 441 fell by 54 percent to 46 percent, according to results reported by the New York Times and carried by Sports Business Journal. The Daily Nebraskan, using the count at 2:20 a.m., put opposition at 55 percent for Initiative 440 and 54.4 percent for Initiative 441. The results are unofficial until the state canvass certifies them.

What the measures would have done

Initiative 440 was a constitutional amendment. It would have authorized laws allowing a person physically located in Nebraska to place sports wagers online through an authorized gaming operator. Initiative 441 was the companion measure. It would have set the rules for licensed racetrack casino operators and their platform partners, and it would have required the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission to adopt online wagering rules by June 1, 2027. Each authorized operator could have offered up to two online platforms, leaving room for as many as 12 mobile sportsbooks across six current or planned gaming facilities.

The tax relief pitch

Supporters sold the measures as a property tax cut. The plan would have applied the current 20 percent gaming tax to online sportsbook revenue, with 70 percent of the tax proceeds going to the Property Tax Credit Cash Fund, the same share that now comes from casino taxes. Tax Relief Nebraska, the committee behind the measures, projected more than $166 million in property tax relief over 10 years in its voter materials. A study the committee cited put the total at about $238 million over 10 years. By comparison, in-person sportsbooks have generated a little more than $4 million since the first locations opened in the summer of 2023.

A $22 million campaign

The campaign raised nearly $22 million by late October, with FanDuel and DraftKings providing most of the money, according to Covers. The committee gathered signatures through the summer, turning in more than 201,000 signatures for the amendment in late June. Supporters argued that Nebraskans already bet with offshore books or drive to Iowa to wager on their phones, and that a legal market would keep some of that money in the state. Opponents argued that mobile access would make gambling easier to reach and could increase financial harm, and they questioned whether the tax money would give homeowners meaningful relief. The sportsbook-backed push took the question to voters through petitions after legalization efforts had failed to advance in the Legislature.

What stays the same

Sports betting stays where it is today. Wagers remain legal only in person at Nebraska's five licensed racetrack casinos, under the system the Legislature created in 2021 through LB561. The state ban on wagers involving Nebraska college teams playing in the state also stays in place. County abstracts of votes are due to the Secretary of State by November 23, and state canvassers meet on November 30 to certify the results. Supporters can try the Legislature again or start a new petition drive, but the defeat closes the proposed route to a mobile launch in 2027.