New York iGaming Bill Dies Again as Hochul Blocks S2614

⏱ 3 min read

New York's iGaming bill is dead — again. Sen. Joseph Addabbo (D-Queens) announced on June 3, 2026 that he was shelving Senate Bill S2614 after concluding that Governor Kathy Hochul would not sign it into law, even if it cleared both chambers before the June 4 legislative deadline. It marks the fourth consecutive year Addabbo has introduced iGaming legislation only to see it blocked at the executive level.

The collapse is particularly jarring against the national backdrop. The U.S. commercial gaming industry posted a record $78.6 billion in gross gaming revenue in 2025 — a 9.1% year-on-year increase — according to the American Gaming Association's (AGA) annual State of the States report. Online casino (iGaming) revenue alone hit $10 billion across the eight legalised states, with Pennsylvania and New Jersey both seeing iGaming outpace their commercial land-based casino revenue for the first time. New York, the largest sports-betting market in the country, is watching neighbouring states bank billions while its own residents play on unregulated offshore platforms.

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What S2614 Would Have Done

Addabbo's bill would have created a licensed framework for online slots, table games, live dealer products and poker in New York, open to existing commercial casino operators and licensed sportsbooks. Key provisions included a $10 million licensing fee for independent platform contractors and mandatory labour peace agreements — conditions designed to address the union objections that had derailed earlier versions of the legislation. An annual $25 million statewide fund for workforce development and responsible gaming was also baked in.

The bill was structured so iGaming revenue could be directed to any state budget line — unlike sports-betting proceeds, which are legally ring-fenced for education.

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Why Hochul Killed It

The governor never publicly opposed S2614, but her silence was decisive. Hochul did not include iGaming in her executive budget, declined to signal support when asked, and has focused her gambling-related attention on responsible gaming initiatives and the three newly licensed New York City downstate casinos — Bally's Bronx, Hard Rock Metropolitan Park, and Resorts World New York City — approved in December 2025.

• Hochul backed the sweepstakes casino ban (S5935A) signed in December 2025, which passed the Senate 57–2 and the Assembly 141–0.
• She championed a gambling mental health institute and measures barring minors from online sports betting.
• She has not publicly endorsed any real-money iGaming expansion beyond sports wagering.
• With a re-election campaign underway, political analysts suggest she sees iGaming as a liability rather than an asset in the current environment.

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The Revenue New York Is Leaving Behind

The fiscal maths are stark. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has put New York's projected three-year deficit at $34 billion. New York already takes in roughly $2.5 billion annually from legal sports betting — the highest-taxed sportsbook market in the country at a 51% GGR tax rate. Addabbo projects iGaming could add at least $475 million per year to that figure, based on conservative modelling from comparable markets.

Pennsylvania offers a useful benchmark. Its iGaming market posted $3.46 billion in revenue in 2025, nearly 28% higher than the prior year, and its tax rate is 54% on slots, 16% on table games. Applied to a New York-sized player base, even modest assumptions produce multi-billion-dollar projections.

State	iGaming Status	2025 iGaming Revenue	Tax Rate (Slots / Tables)	Sports Betting Tax Rate
New Jersey	Legal since 2013	~$2.8B (est.)	17.5% / 17.5%	14.25%
Pennsylvania	Legal since 2019	$3.46B	54% / 16%	36%
Michigan	Legal since 2021	~$2.1B (est.)	20–28% / 20%	8.4%
New York	Not legal	$0	Proposed: 30.5%	51%
Maine	Legalised 2025; launching 2026	Pre-launch	TBD	10%

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National iGaming Landscape

The AGA's State of the States 2026 report — published in May 2026 — found that 34 of 38 commercial gaming jurisdictions set annual revenue records in 2025. Sports betting GGR jumped 22.8% to $16.96 billion on a handle of $166.94 billion. iGaming surpassed $1 billion in monthly revenue for the first time in December 2025.

At the same time, the AGA flagged that unregulated prediction markets have diverted an estimated $500 million in potential sports-betting tax revenue since launching, and that 16 states took enforcement action against prediction market platforms in 2025 alone. The report groups prediction markets, sweepstakes casinos and offshore operators together as the primary threats to the regulated model.

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What Happens Next

Addabbo has confirmed he will introduce a revised version of S2614 in the 2027 session. With Hochul favoured to win re-election in November 2026, the path to legalization likely requires either a shift in her public position or a change in administration. The Q1 2026 AGA Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker shows iGaming growth of 20.7% nationally, adding pressure on holdout states.

• The three newly licensed NYC downstate casinos are expected to collectively generate $1 billion in tax revenue by 2036 — but brick-and-mortar timelines are measured in years, not months.
• Maine is preparing to become the ninth iGaming state with a market launch later in 2026.
• A Senate Commerce Subcommittee hearing on prediction markets — held May 20, 2026 — may shape federal policy in ways that complicate state-by-state iGaming expansion or accelerate it.
• For operators already licensed in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan, New York remains the most valuable untapped iGaming market in the country.

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Sources

Primary and secondary sources consulted and cross-referenced for this article, in order of weight:

Signing my bill into law is not the end of the conversation, but rather a necessary step toward responsible modernisation of New York's online gaming landscape.

— Sen. Joseph Addabbo, Chair, NY Senate Racing, Gaming & Wagering Committee · Sponsoring S2614, January 2026