Nevada’s casino industry and members of Nevada’s congressional delegation are pressing for a fix to a federal tax change that will limit how much gamblers can offset winnings with losses starting in 2026, a shift they say will reduce tournament participation, sports betting, and job prospects. The issue centers on the federal deduction rule for gambling losses, and lawmakers are aiming to reverse it as Congress writes parts of the 2026 budget and appropriations package.
Under the change signed by President Donald Trump in July, players who previously could deduct 100% of their gambling losses from their winnings will, beginning in 2026, be able to deduct only 90%. The Associated Press reported that the effect could force some gamblers to pay taxes on a portion of income they do not effectively realize, based on how winnings and losses net out for tax purposes.
Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nevada, has led Nevada’s push to restore the previous treatment through her FAIR BET bill. She told The Nevada Independent that the response to the proposal was large after she publicized the effort, and she argued that the harm extends beyond top tournament players to “regular guys” who bet on sports such as weekend football.
In the Senate, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, both Nevada Democrats, introduced the bipartisan FULL HOUSE bill, which would restore the same loss-deduction level as Titus’ proposal. Cortez Masto’s spokesperson, Lea Hohenlohe, said in a statement to The Nevada Independent that the senator is trying to include the FULL HOUSE measure in a January appropriations package that Congress aims to pass.
The effort has also drawn interest from Nevada’s Republican member of Congress, Rep. Mark Amodei, who chairs an appropriations subcommittee and said he has been working with Titus to restore the deduction. Amodei told The Nevada Independent that he had been assured the fix would be included when the House and Senate wrap up the 2026 appropriations process, and he described follow-up conversations with House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith, R-Missouri, after meeting with gaming CEOs in Las Vegas this summer.
American Gaming Association CEO Bill Miller said he expects the deduction change to be restored to 100% early in 2026 and told the Business of Betting podcast that he has not encountered a member of Congress opposed to the reversal. Miller was in Las Vegas in early December meeting with resort industry leaders about the ongoing legislative push, and he said the remaining question is what “vehicles” Congress will use to make the fix.
Gaming executives and players say the timeline for any legislative correction is tightening even before 2026 arrives. A gaming source with knowledge of the effort told The Nevada Independent that the change needed to be in place for tax purposes no later than April 2027, while noting that even with a late legislative fix, Nevada’s gambling ecosystem could begin reacting at the start of the year. Erik Seidel, a longtime Las Vegas resident and poker player who has won 10 World Series of Poker bracelets, said the new deduction rule could affect participation and employment, and he linked the industry’s early 2026 impact to tournaments and wagering choices.
Circa Casino Resorts CEO Derek Stevens, who operates properties in downtown Las Vegas and also runs a sports betting business, said casinos and gamblers are already adjusting their behavior because of the uncertainty over the tax treatment. Stevens told The Nevada Independent that bettors plan trips in advance and have begun scaling back 2026 budgets, and he said there is a “sense of urgency” among industry leaders because “it’s already impacting wagering that goes into 2026.”
Stevens also said the tax implications could affect betting on high-profile annual sports events such as the Super Bowl and March Madness, and he pointed to potential effects on slot play. He said he discussed the issue with Smith earlier this month in Las Vegas in a meeting arranged by MGM Resorts International CEO Bill Hornbuckle and attended by executives at Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts, and he warned that the policy is “not good for the country” and “not good for the industry,” adding that it threatens tourism, hospitality, and jobs.
Lawmakers acknowledged that the provision has faced little public defense since it became law nearly six months earlier, and Amodei suggested that the gambling-loss deduction change may have slipped into the final measure during the Senate stage. Titus said Republicans are reluctant to reopen parts of the tax bill that Trump signed, especially if that risks giving political advantage to the opposition, and she said the odds of a presidential fix without Congress acting appear low given the legislative dynamics on the record.
In a separate development, Trump made remarks to a reporter while discussing taxes on the campaign trail, responding that he would have to think about whether there should be “no tax on gambling winnings.” The White House press office did not respond to a request about any plans to eliminate gambling taxes, and Amodei said Trump did not contact his office about the issue, while Titus said the president’s comments appear to reflect confusion about which bills are being considered in Congress.
For Seidel and other industry supporters, the argument is straightforward: many other countries do not treat gambling winnings as taxable income, and Seidel said the new U.S. tax treatment could disincentivize top American players and reduce the ability of gamblers and tournament competitors to participate as they have in the past. He said Titus reached out to talk about the new law and that the two are scheduled to meet at the beginning of 2026, framing the current debate as an effort to reverse a tax policy they view as lacking a clear benefit.