A bill filed in the New Jersey state legislature has more than doubled the operator tax rate on online gambling / sports betting revenue.

State lawmakers and Gov. Phil Murphy agreed to increase the New Jersey sports betting and online casino taxes to 19.75% from 13% and 15%, respectively.

The tax hike hasn’t yet sent shockwaves across the market. But it soon might, as legal sports betting sites will be forced to reassess the cost of staying competitive in what may no longer be a friendly business environment.

The sportsbooks tethered to Caesars Atlantic City (betPARX) and Ocean Casino (Prime Sports) are clear candidates for belt-tightening or even exit.

Ocean Casino’s meager $235,429 is practically a rounding error in gross online sports revenue so far in 2025. A glaring red flag, it’s barely a blip compared to Resorts Digital’s $141 million (DraftKings, ESPN Bet) or the $186 million from Meadowlands (FanDuel).

Additionally, Monmouth Park’s $6.3 million haul year-to-date puts BetRivers long-term online viability in question under a significantly higher tax burden.

With the amount of money bet on sports in the US, specifically New Jersey, there are razor-thin margins for some bookies and sky-high customer acquisition costs. In short, these numbers hint at instability.