There is arguably no issue that unifies the online gambling community more than repealing a new tax rule capping gambling deductions to 90% of losses. The people’s champ might wind up being UFC CEO Dana White, whose letter to the White House, first reported by the Closing Line, could help relieve Congressional gridlock regarding the deduction limit.
A well-known recreational gambler whose mixed martial arts business is headquartered in Las Vegas, White has a personal incentive to push for change. The letter addressed to “The Honorable Donald J. Trump” said the deduction cap is hurting the economy and potentially pushing gamblers to unregulated sportsbooks.
Bettors big and small, winners and losers, have expressed disdain on social media for the throw-in to last year’s ratified tax and spending bill. In practice, the deduction rule means that a bettor who made $500,000 and lost $500,000 over a year, for no net gain, would owe taxes as if they made $50,000. Trade groups such as the American Gaming Association have lobbied for it to be axed.
If successful in his plea to Trump, White would be breaking through where others have fallen short.
Sensing a potential political win among their constituents, Nevada politicians, led by Rep. Dina Titus and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (both Democrats), spent the past year pushing for a repeal. Both Titus and Cortez Masto introduced bills addressing the gripe, but those efforts have gone nowhere, and their barrage of social media posts trying to call attention to the issue have failed to create political momentum.
