A pre-filed bill that would authorize and regulate online gambling in the state of Virginia will await legislative consideration in the coming weeks. State Senator Mamie Locke‘s Senate Bill 827 has already been assigned to the state senate’s Committee on General Laws and Technology, though no hearings on the bill have been scheduled.

SB 827 in its initial form is a shortish six-page bill that would modify Virginia’s existing gambling laws if enacted. The measure calls for online operator’s licenses to be granted if applied for and approved, by any of the state’s existing land-based casino operators.

Virginia, a relatively light participant among casino-offering states, currently has only three full-service live-casino operators, including the brand new Caesars Virginia venue in Danville, which includes a 21-table, WSOP-branded poker room. A fourth casino has been approved as well.

Friendly tax rate, low application fee

SB 827 would assess operators with a 15 percent tax on their adjusted gross Internet gaming revenue. Of that revenue, 97.5% would go into Virginia’s general fund, with 2.5% set aside as funding for the Problem Gambling Treatment and Support Fund, which was created in 2023.

Operators would also pay an initial $1 million application fee. Regulatory control and oversight would fall under the Virginia Lottery Board, which in the bill’s initial language would be charged with creating a regulatory framework by September 30, 2025.

Access to approved Virginia-facing online gambling sites would be available to people physically present in the state who are at least 21 years of age. The bill also acknowledges that because of the possibility of gambling addiction, there is a possible net increase in periods of incarceration or commitment, and as required by Virginia law, an impact statement will attached to the legislation as it moves forward.