Sports wagering in the District won’t be in place for Thursday’s NFL season kickoff, but the Office of Lottery and Gaming has adopted the final rules and regulations for the nascent program, with the licensing process set to begin in the coming weeks.
During the monthlong public comment period following the release of the proposed rules, the lottery received more than 100 responses from entities including DraftKings Inc., Monumental Sports and Entertainment, D.C. United, MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) and the Washington Nationals.
Some tweaks were adopted, but those did not fundamentally change the rules as initially proposed, D.C. Lottery spokeswoman Nicole Jordan said. Rather, the changes served to provide further clarification and greater direction to prospective licensees.
For example:
Monumental, DraftKings and the Nationals all requested that only employees directly involved with an operator’s sports wagering operation be required to obtain a occupational license, a change the lottery reflected in the final rules. The initial regulations required all employees have such a license.