New Jersey lawmakers took out a portion of a proposed sports betting law, which allowed state residents bet on sporting events from their PCs and smartphones. The people sponsoring the bill mentioned that it was a necessary sacrifice with the goal of preventing Gov. Chris Christie from vetoing the bill. He did such a thing in March this year on a bill that would have given New Jersey the green light on being the first state to approve online gambling within the state.

The new bill allows people to bet on sporting events at any Atlantic City casino. People would also be allowed to bet in horse tracks statewide. The bill still needs final approval by the state Senate before the governor is put in a position to make a decision on it. State Senator Ray Lesniak, the bill's biggest advocate, tells us that voting will happen on January 9th next year.

“We want our casinos and racetracks to hit the ground running should New Jersey prove successful in overturning this unfair federal law, and this is a step in the right direction,” said southern New Jersey Democrat John Burzichelli. “New Jersey must be on the forefront of this gaming option should the opportunity arise, and this bill will accomplish that goal. We'll be ready to go once we work through the legislative process.”

If the governor signs the bill, there's still one more obstacle in the way. The federal government still bans sports betting in every state except four of them. This decision needs to be overturned before the bill can be active, even if the governor signs it.

Internet gambling associations estimate that sports betting can generate $10 billion per year in revenues. Of those $10 billion, $100 million per year go to the state government.