ALBANY — The political debate over whether to legalize mixed martial arts is coming to a head in Albany, where concerns over the morality of “ultimate fighting,” as it is often known, as well as the labor practices of the sport’s biggest organization, have made New York one of only several states where the bloody bouts are banned.

The State Senate passed a bill on Wednesday that would make New York the 46th state to allow the sport. It was the third consecutive year the Senate had passed such a bill. In the Assembly, where the measure has died each year, Speaker Sheldon Silver this year has said that, even though he thinks the sport is violent and sets a bad example, it can already be seen on television in New York, so legalizing it could allow the state to influence the sport’s safety practices.

“We may be better off having strict regulation,” said Mr. Silver, a Manhattan Democrat.

Yet the Democratic majority in the Assembly remains split over mixed martial arts.

Assemblyman Bob Reilly, a Democrat from the capital region who has been the chief opponent of legalizing mixed martial arts for several years, said, “If the rules were changed and the violence were taken out, then I would find it acceptable.”