Oregon is hardly considered a major gambling hub, especially when compared to pioneers in this field like Nevada and New Jersey. While the local industry is indeed not as large, the state still offers a decent range of legal and regulated gaming options. Oregon is lacking commercial gambling establishments, but nearly a dozen tribal casinos are strewn around the state, standing ready to satiate local players’ appetites for action.
State-sanctioned lotteries and charitable and social gaming also enjoy legal status in the Beaver State. Thousands of slot machines, also known as video lottery terminals, operate legally outside the tribal venues at taverns, restaurants, and bars. Oregon was an early adopter of parlay sports betting on football, which became available in 1989 via the lottery-operated service Sports Action.
When sports wagering was outlawed on a federal level three years later, Oregon was partially exempt from the ban. It continued to offer football parlays until it eventually prohibited them in 2007 as a condition of being permitted to host a collegiate basketball tournament. After the demise of the federal ban, legal sports betting returned to the state in the summer of 2019 in both retail and remote format.
Oregon’s laws have always been liberal, so much so that it became the first state in the country to decriminalize the possession of illegal substances in small quantities. With this in mind, some readers will perhaps find it surprising that Oregon still disallows online casino games. But as you shall see later, local authorities do not take the enforcement of this ban all that seriously.
Gambling Laws in Oregon
Most gambling activities are covered by the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS), a set of codified state laws republished each odd-numbered year. The latest edition from 2021 lists all gambling-related offenses and their corresponding penalties in Chapter 167. Unlike the statutes of most other states, Oregon’s codified law expressly mentions internet gambling in §167.109.
Internet Gambling under §167.109 of ORS
Definition of Gambling under §167.117
Penalties for Unlawful Gambling under ORS
VTL Regulation
Tribal Gaming Regulation
The Failed Push for Commercial Racino
Internet Gambling under §167.109 of ORS
The section states that individuals who operate internet gambling businesses may not deliberately accept credit, electronic fund transfers, checks, drafts, or other similar means of payment ‘in connection with the participation of another person in unlawful gambling using the internet’. Those who violate the rules risk being convicted of a class C felony, punishable with up to five years in prison and maximum fines of $125,000.
The wording sounds shockingly similar to that of the UIGEA from 2006, the federal legislation that prohibits persons ‘engaged in the business of betting or wagering’ from knowingly accepting credit, checks, and electronic transfers from US citizens. Hence banks and payment processors often block the transactions of US players to unlicensed offshore gambling sites.
Definition of Gambling under §167.117
Illegal gambling is defined as risking or staking money or something valuable on the results of chance-based games or contests. The section excludes some activities from the definition, including social games, raffles, lotteries, bingo, and “bona fide business transactions valid under the law of contracts”. Games, where players cannot buy over $100 worth of tokens within 24 hours, are also exempt from the category of illegal gambling.
Penalties for Unlawful Gambling under ORS
According to §167.122, an individual is guilty of illegal gambling of the second degree when he or she deliberately makes a wager with a bookmaker or participates in illicit gaming as a player. The transgression is considered a class A misdemeanor and comes with $6,250 in fines and a maximum jail time of 364 days upon conviction.
Individuals who deliberately promote or financially gain from illegal gambling are guilty of class C felonies where the heaviest sanctions are five years in prison and $125,000 in fines. The possession, manufacturing, and sale of illegal slot machines and other gambling devices is also a class A misdemeanor under §167.147.
The section exempts devices located in private homes as well as those manufactured before 1900 as long as their owners do not use them for the conduct of illegal gambling. Slot machines manufactured over 25 years before the date when the charges were pressed are also excluded from the category of unlawful gaming devices.
VTL Regulation
Illegal gaming machines were rampant in the Beaver State in the late 1980s. As a response to this, Oregon lawmakers introduced legislation to regulate video lottery terminals (VTLs) in the spring of 1992. The move enabled the Oregon State Lottery to start operating VTLs and contract with retailers authorizing them to provide such machines on their premises.
Only retailers that hold valid licenses from the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission can place VLTs in their establishments. Hence, slot machines in taverns, bars, and restaurants are commonplace in Oregon. Section 461.217 (4) restricts the maximum number of machines per retailer to six, while licensed racetracks can operate up to ten terminals.
Tribal Gaming Regulation
Oregon is home to nine Native American tribes that can offer casino-style (Class III) gaming under a federal law known as the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). The legislation was enacted on October 17, 1988, to oversee the conduct of gambling within the reservations of federally recognized tribes.
All nine tribal nations have negotiated compacts with Oregon for the provision of Class III gaming, including house-banked games like blackjack, baccarat, craps, pai gow, and roulette. Slot machines and keno are also readily available at Oregon’s tribal casinos. The gambling venues are jointly regulated by the tribal and state authorities.
The Failed Push for Commercial Racino
The nine tribes hold what we could only describe as a monopoly on casino gaming in Oregon. Several years ago, Travis Boersma, the billionaire owner of Grants Pass Down, announced plans to open a commercial gaming facility next to the racetrack if the state allows it. Boersma poured $50 million into the track and wanted to revive the local horse racing industry.
However, he insisted he needed to also launch the Flying Lark gaming venue for the venture to work out financially. The venue was supposed to offer historical racing machines (HRRs), which resemble slots but the outcomes are based on past horse races rather than on complete randomization.
The tribes opposed the plan and argued that the launch of gaming outside reservation lands violated their compacts with the state. The tribal leaders labeled the Flying Lark an illicit operation under state law and insisted it would illegally compete with their casinos.
The situation escalated to the Oregon Department of Justice (ODOJ), which ruled out that the gaming venue was unconstitutional and the HHRs were games of chance rather than of skill. As such, they constituted illegal lotteries, ODOJ concluded. The ruling ultimately sealed the fate of the Flying Lark venture.
The Oregon Racing Commission (ORC), the entity that oversees the local pari-mutuel industry, could not issue a license despite disagreeing with the Attorney General’s stance. The ORC said HHRs involved some skill, unlike slots, which rendered them a form of pari-mutuel wagering rather than casino gaming. However, the body could not proceed with license issuance in the wake of ODOJ’s ruling.
Tribal Gaming Compacts in Oregon
The terms of the nine compacts between Oregon and the local tribes are quite similar. Each tribal nation is required to establish multiple regulatory departments to supervise its casino gaming operations. The tribes must also receive authorization for the conduct of Class III gambling from their corresponding gaming commissions.
The commissions must then submit the regulatory rules to the Oregon State Police, a governmental agency that oversees the tribal gaming activities in conjunction with the tribal authorities. The compacts impose restrictions on the maximum number of slots each casino can operate.
Nonetheless, negotiating additional gaming machines with the state is possible if a tribe reaches its limit. The maximum number of gaming machines is compact-specific. For example, the Grand Ronde compact authorizes the operation of up to 2,000 video lottery terminals, whereas the Warm Springs tribe can offer no more than 400 machines at its facility.
The Ministry of the Interior must approve each state-tribe compact before it comes into effect. Below is a breakdown of all tribes currently doing business in Oregon.
The nine gambling compacts have no maximum validity terms and the tribes can renegotiate them whenever they wish. They authorize the provision of casino games belonging to the Class III category, such as slot machines, and house-banked table games like roulette, baccarat, craps, and pai gow poker. Keno and off-track pari-mutuel wagering are also permitted on tribal lands.
Employee Licenses
Class III Gaming Contractor Licenses
No Gambling on Credit
Employee Licenses
All management officials and key employees of the casinos must obtain licenses from the corresponding tribal gaming commissions. They must submit their full names, SSNs, permanent residential addresses, birth dates, and past employment records for the last five years. Each prospective employee should also have two sets of fingerprints taken.
Applicants who have been convicted of serious crimes may be denied licenses from the tribal gaming commissions. The maximum validity of the employee licenses is no more than three years from the date of issuance. All staff members must wear identification badges with their names and photographs.
Class III Gaming Contractor Licenses
Gaming equipment manufacturers and vendors require permits for Class III gaming contractors. The state police authorities have compiled a list of all approved vendors, which includes well-known companies like Ainsworth, Aristocrat Technologies, SG Gaming, and TCS John Huxley. Class III vendor contracts have maximum validity terms of seven years.
No Gambling on Credit
Compact terms prohibit tribal operators from extending credit to their patrons – all wagering should be conducted with cash. Cashing checks on the gaming floor is also disallowed since the compacts treat it as an extension of credit. Patrons cannot carry firearms when visiting the gaming facilities. Tribal casinos in Oregon do not serve complimentary alcoholic beverages to players.
Responsible Gambling Policies at Oregon Tribal Casinos
According to the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), approximately 2.6% of the state’s adult population struggles with problem gambling to some degree. More than 80,000 Oregonians suffer from clinical gambling disorders, while 180,000 others are at higher risk of developing a gambling addiction. Taking these figures into account, we find it a bit surprising local landbased casinos do not have any dedicated programs for self-exclusion.
The operators are not obliged to display responsible gaming messages on their premises, either. The compact terms do not impose any specific restrictions on gambling advertising. Age restrictions are in place, however. Tribal casinos must not allow anyone under the legal age of 21 to participate in gambling or loiter on the gaming floor.
Staff members under this age are allowed as long as their professional duties are not related to the conduct of gaming. There are no restrictions on the casinos’ operational hours. The facilities can conduct gaming around the clock, including on national holidays.
State authorities strive to minimize gambling harm through research, education, and various responsible gaming policies. Oregon law requires the state-sanctioned lottery operator to allocate 1% of its annual revenue to a dedicated fund for addiction treatment and prevention. Several years ago, the Beaver State ranked second in the country in terms of investments into gambling addiction services.
Online Gambling in Oregon
Except for social casinos and sports wagering, online gambling remains illegal in Oregon for the time being. Social casinos offer classics like baccarat, blackjack, and hundreds of online slots but the games are free to play and customers use virtual credits for betting. Such social games are intended solely for entertainment as participants cannot win any real cash.
These are broadly accessible via social platforms like Facebook or dedicated social casino websites. Local players who crave some real-money action have the alternative of joining offshore online casinos operating from outside the United States. With that said, Oregonians should approach such sites with due caution since some of them are not properly licensed. Playing there is sometimes riskier due to the lack of adequate regulatory oversight and customer protections.
Legal Sports Betting in Oregon
Oregon has been offering legal sports betting since the late 1980s when the state lottery operator launched the parlay wagering service Sports Action. The platform was eventually discontinued in 2007 due to pressure from professional sports franchises. After the demise of the federal ban under PASPA, the state expanded its sports wagering industry.
Sports betting is now available at lottery-operated retail locations, kiosks, and tribal casinos. Oregonians can have a flutter on all major professional sporting events and enjoy a nice variety of bet types, including moneyline, straight bets, futures, teasers, totals, and head-to-head wagers.
Restrictions on Collegiate Games
Mobile Betting Apps
Withholding Taxes on Punters
Restrictions on Collegiate Games
It is important to point out that the state lottery cannot take action on any collegiate sporting events at the time of publication. The sportsbooks operating within tribal lands are exempt from these restrictions. However, this could change in the future if SB 1503 passes into law. Sponsored by Senator Peter Courtney (D), the bill seeks to authorize bets on college games offered by the lottery as long as they do not involve the individual performance of the young athletes.
Needless to say, the idea has been met with fierce opposition on behalf of tribal gambling operators. They argue lifting the current restrictions would negatively impact their bottom line and pull away valuable revenue they use for the funding of various key services.
Mobile Betting Apps
Other than that, online punters from Oregon can place bets remotely via the state lottery app powered by DraftKings. The app enables users to set individual deposit and loss limits, take extended breaks from wagering, or self-exclude completely.
The Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde also launched a mobile app recently in partnership with BetMGM. Anyone can use the app, including out-of-state bettors, provided they are physically located within Oregon. Tribal sportsbook and casino operators are not subject to taxation. The same applies to the Oregon Lottery, which is operated and owned by the state.
Withholding Taxes on Punters
Tribal and state-operated sportsbooks are not required to pay any integrity fees to professional sports franchises. Punters are subject to state withholding taxes of 8% imposed on winnings over $1,500. Winnings over $5,000 are also taxed at a federal level at a withholding rate of 24%.
Conclusion
Although it is not regarded as a major gambling hub, Oregon still has plenty of legal gaming options to keep its gamblers satisfied. Commercial casinos are unavailable but tribal gambling operators are thriving on Oregonian soil and have a rather strong presence in the state. In-person and mobile sports wagering is also legal here but with some restrictions on collegiate events.
The Beaver State does not tolerate online real-money gaming for the time being and clearly states this in its revised statutes. But as we mentioned earlier, some offshore casinos disregard Oregon’s anti-online gambling stance and still accept real-money action from local players. Hopefully, the state will move to legalize and regulate this form of online gambling but by the looks of it, the chances of this happening soon are minuscule.
