A bill for an act concerning the licensing and regulation of gambling games, including a moratorium on the issuance of new licenses, and including effective date and retroactive applicability provisions.

SF 173 establishes a moratorium on new gambling licenses in Iowa from 2025 through 2030, capping total licenses at 19. It requires a socioeconomic study every eight years on gambling's financial and social impacts, including effects on existing operators, rural communities, and tourism. The bill restricts new licenses to counties with existing gambling operations as of January 2025, prohibits new licenses if they would reduce existing operators' revenue by over 10%, and bans applications in rural counties (under 30,000 population) or border counties for eight years after denial. This directly affects gambling operators, rural counties, and existing racetracks or boats seeking expansion.