THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Best bet this weekend, no money to be spent in Idaho

Let me share some numbers with you.

The context is pretty simple …

Sunday’s Super Bowl LVII between the Chiefs and Eagles will draw more legal wagering in the United States than any of its 56 predecessors.

According to a survey done by the American Gaming Association survey, a record 50.4 million Americans plan to bet an estimated $16 BILLION on the Super Bowl — a 61 percent and 110 percent increase from 2022, respectively.

None of that money will be bet in Idaho, of course, although plenty of your friends and neighbors will get down on the game.

They’ll simply do it as they always have — betting with a local bookie or through an online account in someplace like the Cayman Islands.

However …

Idahoans these days also can make bets on the Super Bowl (or almost any other sports event) simply by driving to a legal sports betting outlet in Washington or Oregon.

It’s as easy as buying a six-pack of Coke in Oregon, where sports betting is run by the state lottery and has kiosks available pretty much everywhere.

WE FOLKS in North Idaho who’d like to make a wager have to find a licensed Native American establishment in Washington that has a sports book.

The closest are Northern Quest Resort & Casino and Spokane Tribe Casino — both just east of Spokane near the airport.

So …

Why can’t we bet on a football or baseball game (legally) in Idaho?

Good question.

It’s especially relevant since 28 states now have legal sports betting, or are in the process of getting it up and running.

And what do those states where you can bet $20 on the Super Bowl have in common?

One way or another, they pocket TAX MONEY from sports betting.

It is a complete mystery to me why any conservative state like — oh, Idaho — would want to shut out an opportunity to add state revenue and further ease the tax burden on residents (and businesses you want to lure from California or elsewhere).

Isn’t that the whole idea of living in a conservative state?

The government doesn’t throw away our money, and works to keep our taxes as low as possible.

Right?

So, why dismiss a large income stream from an activity that is now legal in half of the United States (with that percentage rising yearly)?

No, NO …

Don’t tell me it’s a morality issue about gambling.

That doesn’t fly, not when the state sponsors a lottery — a total game of chance with almost impossible odds of winning.

What’s the next argument, that the state is restricted by agreements with Native American tribes, and they don’t pay taxes on casino revenue.

(Actually, all their employees and large gambling winners absolutely do, but we’ll skip over that for a second.)

If a tribal casino were allowed to open a successful sports betting parlor, it would almost certainly need to partner with a professional gambling operation – and those companies WOULD pay taxes for the privilege of making some money.

In Washington, there are Native American casino sports books operated by FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Caesar’s — the four largest betting companies in the country.

DO YOU mind if I hop back a few years to tell a story?

For a few years, I was sports editor/columnist at the Daily Herald in Provo, Utah.

Needless to say, gambling was illegal in the state.

Ah, but …

A whole lot of Utahns enjoyed having a flutter (old-fashioned betting term).

As it happens, there are communities just on the edge of the Utah border that do a brisk gambling business — Mesquite (Nevada), Wendover (Nevada) and Evanston (Wyoming).

The one thing that always made me laugh when driving to, or through, one of those communities was that they always were JAMMED with cars carrying Utah license plates.

Shoot, there are special gambling buses that run back and forth between Salt Lake City and Wendover — and you’d have to fight for a seat.

I wrote a column once back then, suggesting that rather than letting all that cash flow out of the state, Utah should establish a 10-mile gambling zone on each of the three (mostly empty) highways.

Utah could claim they were not technically part of the state, except for seizing the tax money.

Perfect.

I’m still waiting on that plan (smile).

My point here is obvious …

With state after state realizing that many of its citizens are going to bet on sports, they simply take the step of making it legal, overseeing it carefully, and pocketing the revenue.

So, Idaho?

Explain what’s wrong with that theory.

Please.

I’d be fascinated to hear it.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”