There’s good news and bad news for the sports gambling industry in Illinois. The good news is that a bill to legalize the activity is still alive and moving forward. The bad news is that it is moving forward after amendments were added that make it the most expensive sports gambling bill in the country.

After amendments were added to the bill in April to keep “bad actors” out of the business, two more amendments have now been added by Representative Michael Zalewski. The amendments were designed, in part, to replace five proposed amendments previously discussed by lawmakers, including the bad actor change. However, the result is a bill that is essentially a completely new version and which doesn’t carry much of the original language.

Going forward, what is now House 1260 (H 1260) will be the principle bill for sports gambling legalization in Illinois, replacing H 3308, and Zalewski is now the primary sponsor of the legislation. The lawmaker sought to make a number of changes ahead of a vote on the bill by the House Sales, Amusement and Other Taxes Subcommittee, but his actions resulted in more questions than answers.

Where the changes really stick out are the fees for sports gambling. One of the amendments states that seven brick-and-mortar licenses would be made available at a cost of $15 million each. Online licenses, of which there would be three, would cost $20 million each. Skin licenses are an additional $5 million.