Oklahoma may need to start working on its own sports betting legislature if it hopes to keep pace with neighboring states. But local tribal leaders want to make sure it isn’t done in a rush.

With the tribes gaming compact fight now in the rear-view mirror, and with nearby Louisiana approving sports betting in the November 3 elections, people are starting to talk about sports betting as the next way Oklahoma can fix its budget problems. But there’s no rush to get it done just yet. “There’s no clock ticking on when this needs to get done,” said Matthew Morgan, chairman of the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association. “I guess it could come up next legislative session, but it may not.”

Morgan admitted that it could be a useful step in mending relationships between the state and the tribes

“The governor has been supportive of negotiating with Oklahoma’s tribes in good faith to expand opportunity for all parties and remains committed to working with all Oklahomans on top ten solutions that deliver a stronger, more prosperous future for our state,” Stitt spokeswoman Baylee Lakey wrote.