West Virginia pols guard against betting ‘integrity fee’ stealth push

West Virginia’s sports bettors could have four local wagering options by the end of September, but state legislators fear plans are afoot to revive mandatory ‘integrity fees’ for betting operators.

On Monday, the West Virginia Gazette Mail reported that the state’s Wheeling Island and Mardi Gras casinos would be testing their sports betting technology between September 24-26, with grand openings of their sportsbooks planned for September 27.

Penn National Gaming’s Hollywood Casino at Charlestown Races launched the state’s legal betting business last month and the Greenbrier Resort’s Casino Club joined the betting brigade last week. The state has yet to witness the launch of its first mobile betting app, but these are tipped to be in the mail.

But West Virginia’s Joint Standing Committee on Finance spent most of its time Monday trying to figure out whether Governor Jim Justice – who owns the Greenbrier – and West Virginia Lottery officials were still pushing plans to offer the major sports leagues a cut of the state’s betting handle or require betting operators to use league-supplied data to judge wagering results.