Florida senate passes mega-casino bill

That means voters could decide if dog tracks and horse tracks in their counties can add slot machines. The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, also calls for regulating Internet gaming cafes, which offer sweepstakes entries to customers who buy Internet time.

Besides, the bill would create a state agency called the Florida State Gaming Commission to license, regulate and enforce gambling throughout Florida. The commission's initial responsibilities would include awarding three casino gambling licenses in south Florida's Miami-Dade and Broward counties, in return for an investment of at least us$ 2 billion by each of the casino operators in Las Vegas-style hotel towers and glitzy resort complexes.

Successful applicants would be required to make a us$ 50 million one-time license payment, with an annual renewal fee pegged at us$ 2 million. They would also be subject to a 10-percent tax on gross gambling revenues.

State law now bars casinos from expanding beyond businesses or so-called pari-mutuels operated by the Seminole Indian tribe and selected racetracks and jai alai courts. Approval also came after another amendment that would allow pari-mutuels the right to operate full-fledged casino games at the same tax rates levied against the larger resort casinos.

Gambling titans led by the Las Vegas Sands Corp have been lobbying to persuade lawmakers to allow for full casino gambling at so-called "destination resorts" in Florida since the Seminoles won their right to offer blackjack, baccarat and other banked card games more than two years ago.

Anti-gambling sentiment runs strong in many parts of the state. Opponents including the Chamber of Commerce and Disney World, a leading magnet for tourism, say gaming threatens to tarnish Florida's "family-friendly" image.

"We're pretty pleased with this 7-3 vote, it's a good start to get this thing going," Nick Iarossi, a Tallahassee-based lobbyist for the Las Vegas Sands, told Reuters shortly after the gambling bill cleared its initial legislative hurdle.

"Our goal is to get it though the committees and get it to a floor vote," he added, saying he hoped the bill would become law sometime during the current legislative session, which officially gets under way on Tuesday.

But the head of the Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association, Rich Maladecki, said he's worried that mega-casinos would hurt the local economy."Why should the state of Florida encourage short-term gains for the potential disaster in the long-term?" said Maladecki.