BATON ROUGE - A new legislative session is fast approaching, and with it comes new efforts to legalize sports gambling in Louisiana.

Senate Bill 130, pre-filed by State Senator Cameron Henry, and Senate Bill 66, pre-filed by State Senator Kirk Talbot, are the latest proposals to legalize betting on sporting events in Louisiana. The bills call for a statewide item in the fall 2020 election through which voters can approve or refuse the proposal on a parish-by-parish basis. 

Sports betting would only be allowed in parishes to approve the item after state legislation "providing for the licensing, regulation, and taxation of such activities and operations" are enacted and become effective.

The latest legislative session is slated to begin in March.

A similar proposal fell through in the House Appropriations Committee last year after the Casino Trade Association withdrew its support due to amendments made to the bill being "untenable." A majority of the fees, fines and revenue collected from sports betting in casinos would have gone to the state's Early Child Education programs, per the amendments to that failed proposal.