The bill, as reported by Gambling News, cleared a Senate vote by a margin of two, which is not a majority to dismiss but is also not the kind of mandate that smooths a path through a finance committee. Senate Bill 104 now moves to the Senate Finance Committee, where its fiscal assumptions will face the kind of scrutiny that has ended similar proposals in other states before they ever reached a floor vote.
The mechanism worth watching here is sequence, not sentiment. A bill advancing through a legislative committee is a procedural step, not a policy commitment. New Hampshire has no existing commercial casino infrastructure, so any online gambling framework would need to establish licensing authority, a regulatory body or delegation to an existing one, and a tax structure that satisfies the Finance Committee's arithmetic. Each of those is a place where votes can be lost.
The 13-11 vote suggests the chamber is not yet persuaded it wants to get there. A narrow committee margin is a beginning, not a verdict, and the Finance Committee will now determine whether the numbers on the revenue side are as compelling as the bill's sponsors believe.
Elena Vella 
Marcus Azzopardi 
Dua Mifsud