Kansas sports wagering aims to beat Jan. 1 deadline, begin operations during football season

Gov. Laura Kelly dismisses idea of luring Kansas City Chiefs across state line

by Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — Sports wagering in Kansas is effective July 1, and the governor said Monday she is optimistic state regulators will have live betting up and running as early as football season.

The new law will allow Kansans to bet on their favorite teams through the four state-owned casinos, which may use digital or in-person avenues to engage in business. Under the control of the Kansas Lottery, alongside the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission, casinos can establish their own sportsbooks or partner with up to three online betting operators to launch mobile platforms.

To date, major operators like Bally’s, DraftKings, FanDuel and BetMGM have announced plans to partner with the state casinos. American Indian tribes can negotiate new or updated gaming compacts to include sports wagering, a process that is already underway, said Gov. Laura Kelly.

Regulators must set up guidelines and launch operations by Jan. 1, 2023, but Kelly provided a more optimistic timeline. She said the latest goal she heard was for sports wagering to go live this fall, sometime during the collegiate or professional football season.

While projections for how much the state stands to gain from legal sports wagering vary, once up and running, Kelly touted the potential to help in critical areas.

“We’re not going to be balancing the budget on the revenues coming in from sports betting, but every little bit helps,” Kelly said. “It allows us to do things like fully fund our schools, fully fund our roads and expand broadband.”

The state Racing and Gaming Commission plans to present a set of draft rules at the July 22 meeting for how it will receive, consider and approve proposed gaming facility contracts. At that time, the commission can approve these regulations.

Under the new state law, 80% of sports wagering revenue will be deposited into a fund for attracting a professional sports team to Kansas, contributing to speculation that the state could be gunning to bring the Kansas City Chiefs across the state line. But Kelly poured cold water on the idea during a news conference Monday, saying any past remarks about the possibility were offered tongue-in-cheek.

“I have never approached the Chiefs, nor has anybody in my administration,” Gov. Kelly said. “Quite honestly, the amount of money that this bill would generate and put into that fund would not come close to being what you would need to be able to attract a major league team.”

In addition to the professional sports team fund, the law also establishes a white-collar crime fund to help with gambling addictions.

Casinos can enter into agreements with professional sports franchises and venues, like Sporting Kansas City or the Kansas Speedway, to place kiosks at their facility, allowing fans to place bets while watching the game.

The long-sought law gained approval 73 to 49 in the House, and in the waning hours of the veto session, the Senate followed with a 21 to 13 vote. The governor signed the legislation into law in May.

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Unemployment rate lowest ever in Kansas

Gov. Laura Kelly today announced that Kansas hit the lowest unemployment rate in the state’s recorded history, at 2.3%.

Unemployment continues to decline in the state, even as the unemployment rate nationally holds flat. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Kansas has the sixth lowest unemployment rate in the country relative to other states.

“My administration has worked to ensure that every Kansan who wants a job, can have a job,” Gov. Laura Kelly said. “I’m proud that we have achieved the lowest unemployment rate in our state’s history at 2.3%, over a full percentage point below the nation’s unemployment rate. We will continue breaking economic records by prioritizing job creation, business investment, and workforce development.”

Preliminary estimates reported by the Labor Market Information Services division of the Kansas Department of Labor and the Bureau of Labor Statistics show a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 2.3% in May, a decrease from 2.4% in April and a decrease from 3.4% this time last year. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in the United States as a whole has remained at 3.6% for three consecutive months, a rate significantly higher than Kansas estimates.

Kansas began keeping records of monthly unemployment rates in January 1976.

Since the start of the Kelly administration, Kansas has secured 654 economic development projects worth $8,943,214,898.00 in capital investment and has retained and created 43,111 jobs.

According to Kansas Department of Labor statistics, the Wyandotte County unemployment rate was 3.2 percent in May 2022 as compared to 2.9 percent in April 2022. The May 2022 rate represents 2,525 persons who are unemployed. One year ago, in May 2021, the Wyandotte County unemployment rate was 5.3 percent.

The Kansas City, Kansas, unemployment rate was 3.3 percent in May 2022 as compared to 2.9 percent in April 2022. The May 2022 rate represents 2,349 persons who are unemployed. In May 2021, the unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in Kansas City, Kansas.

Monarchs triumph over Milwaukee, 16-5

Darnell Sweeney of the Kansas City Monarchs delivered one of his four hits on Sunday, June 19, in the Monarchs 16-5 win over the Milwaukee Milkmen at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)
Matt Adams of the Kansas City Monarchs delivers a three-run home run on Sunday, June 19, in the Monarchs 16-5 win over the Milwaukee Milkmen at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)

by Gabriel Lopez, Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs (22-11) settled their beef with the Milwaukee Milkmen (18-15) Sunday afternoon.

On Moo Day at Legends Field, the Monarchs offense was incredible, racking up 23 hits, 16 runs and four home runs. Kansas City beat Milwaukee in a whopping fashion, 16-5.

The Monarchs got on the scoreboard first in the second inning. David Thompson led off with a triple to deep left-center. Casey Gillaspie quickly brought him home with a sacrifice fly to right field to give Kansas City a 1-0 lead.

The Milkmen responded in the top half of the third. After Mason Davis singled to right, Correlle Prime hit a two-run home run to left field to put Milwaukee up 2-1.

The Milkmen’s lead didn’t last long. Willie Abreu and Darnell Sweeney hit back-to-back singles to start the inning. Matt Adams stepped up to the plate and launched a three-run moonshot to home run hill as the Monarchs retook the lead, 4-2.

Kansas City added an insurance run in the fourth when Gaby Guerrero drove an RBI single to right to score Sweeney.
The Monarchs started to pour it on the Milkmen in the bottom of the fifth. The offense collected 10 hits, two ground rule doubles, two home run hill bombs, and 10 runs in the inning. Sweeney and Gillaspie both hammered home runs and after five innings Kansas City led 15-2.

Will Kengor hit a solo home run for Milwaukee, but the Milkman still trailed by 12. Both teams were quiet until Alexis Olmeda hit a solo shot over the home run patio to give the Monarchs a 16-3 lead.

The Milkmen scored two more runs in the ninth, but Jameson McGrane retired Dylan Kelly to end the game.

The Monarchs will go head-to-head against the Sioux City Explorers for the first game of the three-game homestand at 7 p.m. Tuesday night, June 21.

The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.