Deputy Editor
According to a Monday presser released by a Mike Pence-led advocacy group, gamblers shouldn’t be able to deduct a single penny of their losses for tax purposes. Meanwhile, poker pro Doug Polk has added his voice to the camp advocating for the FAIR BET and FULL HOUSE Acts, two pieces of federal legislation that would undo recent changes to gambling tax policy.
The debate relates to the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act, one clause of which limits gamblers to deducting 90% of their losses. Even many Republicans who voted for the bill say that provision was a mistake and should be reversed. However, Pence’s Advancing American Freedom Foundation disagrees, arguing that capping the deductions isn’t enough.
“Until the One Big Beautiful Bill, America’s tax code actively encouraged gambling by offering full expensing for gambling losses,” the press release reads. “Gambling losses should not be deductible at all.”
According to the AAFF, allowing such deductions amounts to “tax favoritism.”
FAIR BET Act Hopes To Reverse Gambling Tax Change
The advocacy provides direct opposition to Democratic Rep. Dina Titus of Nevada’s Fair Accounting for Income Realized from Betting Earnings Taxation (FAIR BET) Act. The FAIR BET Act hopes to reverse the aforementioned change to 90% max deductions, set to become law in 2026 as part of the OBBB.
“This common-sense legislation will bring fairness back to gaming taxation, making sure that gamblers can fully deduct losses when they report their winnings,” she said in July when introducing the legislation.
Pence’s group contends that the new tax law would encourage many Americans to stop gambling, which would be a net positive.
Those managing budgets in states that rely on gambling taxes might disagree. The American Gaming Association says that the industry provides $53 billion in annual taxes to federal and state governments.
Others with a vested interest in seeing the FAIR BET Act pass include poker players and anyone running poker-related businesses. Doug Polk falls into both categories, and he appeared on a News Nation segment to advocate in favor of the tax reversal.
Doug Polk: ‘It’s Wrong To Do That To Our Community’
In a roughly three-minute interview, Polk made his case that the new gaming tax law doesn’t make sense and is inherently unfair to gamblers.
“If you want to tax us on money we made, that’s fine,” he said. “But if you want to tax us on money we didn’t, I have a serious problem with that. It’s wrong to do that to our community.”
Polk also outlined the broader economic impact he expects to see.
“You’re going to see revenues drop, you’re going to see tourism drop, you’re going to see jobs lost,” he said.
Industry observers will continue to track the progress of the FAIR BET Act with great interest. As of Tuesday afternoon, prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket slightly favor the reversal of the tax change.
Image credit: Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons (license)
